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 on Friday.
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.
“To pick up five is a great feeling,” Plunkett told Sky Sports.
“My mum and dad were here too, just back from holiday in Cyprus.
“We created so many chances and beat the bat a lot,” the former Durham paceman added.
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.
Sangakkara’s innings was his third score in excess of 50 in this series, after he made 147 and 61 in at Lord’s, and also the sixth successive Test innings in all that he’d past the half-century landmark.
The left-hander could have been run out on nought and was then caught behind on 16, only for neither bowler Plunkett nor wicketkeeper Matt Prior to appeal.
He was given a further life on 27 when Prior dropped a routine catch, again off Plunkett, and missed again on 57, when Moeen Ali failed to hold a far tougher chance at backward point.
Sri Lanka, with Headingley bathed in bright sunshine after the early morning gloom, were making good progress at 228 for five.
But Sangakkara eventually exited when he square-drove at Broad and Ian Bell, in his 100th Test, held an excellent catch in the gully.
Sangakkara batted for just over three-and-a-half hours, facing 147 balls with 13 fours.
His departure sparked a collapse that saw four wickets lost for one run in nine balls.
“The wicket started to play pretty well but flattened out, some good balls in the right areas and the tail not wagging for too long probably cost us 75 runs,” Sangakkara said.
Plunkett, who had already performed impressively Friday, then had Dhammika Prasad caught behind for a duck.
Broad returned next over and ended an enterprising knock from Chandimal, playing in place of injured wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene, when he was caught by Cook at first slip.
Broad then had his hat-trick when tailender Eranga was caught behind although neither the bowler nor his England teammates were aware of his feat until an announcement was made over the public address system.
Plunkett, appropriately, ended the innings when he had Nuwan Pradeep, who’d frustrated England at Lord’s by holding out for the final five balls of the match, caught behind.
The 29-year-old Plunkett surpassed his previous Test-best of three for 17, also against Sri Lanka, in fBirmingham in 2006.
Sri Lanka thought they had Cook caught at slip by Sangakkara on five but, with replays inconclusive, the left-hander survived.
“I felt I jammed my fingers under it, but sometimes you really don’t know,” Sangakkara said.
“People used to walk, people don’t walk, people used to take the fielder’s word, but that’s the way the game is now.”
There was further drama before stumps when play was briefly held up after a piece of cheese was thrown from among the crowd in the Western Stand at Eranga.
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David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 2.5/5
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
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The specs: 2019 Haval H6
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Sinopharm vaccine explained
The Sinopharm vaccine was created using techniques that have been around for decades.
“This is an inactivated vaccine. Simply what it means is that the virus is taken, cultured and inactivated," said Dr Nawal Al Kaabi, chair of the UAE's National Covid-19 Clinical Management Committee.
"What is left is a skeleton of the virus so it looks like a virus, but it is not live."
This is then injected into the body.
"The body will recognise it and form antibodies but because it is inactive, we will need more than one dose. The body will not develop immunity with one dose," she said.
"You have to be exposed more than one time to what we call the antigen."
The vaccine should offer protection for at least months, but no one knows how long beyond that.
Dr Al Kaabi said early vaccine volunteers in China were given shots last spring and still have antibodies today.
“Since it is inactivated, it will not last forever," she said.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
The Written World: How Literature Shaped History
Martin Puchner
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