Sri Lankans falter after Stuart Broad's hat-trick

Liam Plunkett took his Test-best figures and Stuart Broad his second Test hat-trick as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 257 by England on the first day of the second Test at Headingley yesterday

Leeds: Liam Plunkett took his Test-best figures and Stuart Broad his second Test hat-trick as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 257 by England on the first day of the second Test at Headingley yesterday.

England's Stuart Broad celebrates taking the wicket of Dinesh Chandimal yesterday. Pic/AFP.

Fast bowler Plunkett, on his Yorkshire home ground, took five for 64 in only his second Test in seven years after he was recalled for the drawn first match of this two-Test series at Lord’s.

Broad, who previously took a hat-trick against India at Trent Bridge in 2011, became the first England bowler, and only the fourth in all, to perform the feat twice in Tests after Australia’s Hugh Trumble, Jimmy Matthews and Pakistan’s Wasim Akram, when he removed Kumar Sangakkara (79), Dinesh Chandimal (45) and Shaminda Eranga with successive deliveries split across two overs.

England at stumps were 36 without loss. Alastair Cook, the England captain, was 14 not out and Australia-born opener Sam Robson 21 not out.

England, who had seen Cook win the toss and opt to field first in overcast conditions were clearly confident of inflicting a fresh collapse upon Sri Lanka having come within one wicket of victory after dismissing nine of the tourists’ batsmen on the last day at Lord’s. But England’s early good work threatened to be undone by Sri Lanka star batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who was given four reprieves on the way to top-scoring with 79.

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