19 year old Trinitian Lahiru Kumara put on a brilliant show of swing bowling to take 7 wickets and rattle the English batting line-up for just 208 on the first day of the 2nd Youth Test at Northampton.It was an ideal day for the Lankans on the field; Charith Asalanka won the toss and put the home side in to bat first which worked out perfectly for the Lankans.
The opening pair of Olly Westbury and skipper Max Holden gave the Englishmen a good start with a 91 run partnership.
After the dismissal of Westbury for 45, the England batting line up was hit by a storm.Lahiru Kumara gave the Englishmen a taste of their own medicine with some fiery swing bowling.
He took five wickets in a space of just 9.3 overs in which he gave away only 10 runs. England U19’s had no answer to Kumara and it was only Holden who survived till the very end.
Max Holden stood out from the rest by scoring more than half of the runs in the first innings.
His unbeaten 111 showed resilience and fight which helped the home side to reach 208 runs in their first innings.Kumara ended with splendid figures of 7 for 82 in 28 overs with 5 maidens.
The Sri Lankans came into bat in the latter stages of the third session and they managed to score 48 runs for the loss of just one wicket.
