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'2 minute silence for Bazball' - Fans react as Pathum Nissanka's ton helps Sri Lanka beat England at The Oval

While chasing a target of 219 runs, Sri Lanka won the 3rd Test match against England by eight wickets, thanks to Pathum Nissanka's blistering ton.

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Arunima Purohit
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Pathum Nissanka

Sri Lanka beat England (Source: X)

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Sri Lanka have emerged to be victorious in the 3rd Test match against England at the Kennington Oval, London. Their fighting spirit has finally brought some good results, along with Pathum Nissanka's marvellous century in just 107 balls. Chasing a target of 219 runs, day four's first session went in Sri Lanka's favour as opener Nissanka and Kusal Mendis stood their ground and helped Sri Lanka to pull off an amazing victory by eight wickets. 

After Mendis' dismissal, Angelo Mathews took to the crease and extended his support from the other end. However, Nissanka's gameplay outplayed everybody in the game. His shots and strokeplay won the hearts of the fans and critics. It was Sri Lanka's decision to win the toss and invite the English team to bat first. Their decision seemed unrealistic at the start, as the hosts scored 315 runs in the first innings, and Sri Lanka could only score 263 runs. 

Ollie Pope was the first-inning hero, scoring 154 runs off 156 balls, including 19 boundaries and two sixes. Along with him, Ben Duckett scored 86 runs off 79 balls. Milan Rathnayake claimed three wickets. But for Sri Lanka, Nissanka scored 64 runs off 51 balls and skipper Dhananjaya de Silva scored 69 runs off 111 balls. Also, Kamindu Mendis scored 64 runs off 91 balls. For England, Josh Hull and Olly Stone claimed three wickets each.

Also Watch: Shoaib Bashir takes stunning catch to dismiss Kusal Mendis in 3rd Test match

Sri Lanka's fortune turn in 2nd innings

Lahiru Kumara's game changed in the second innings as he claimed four wickets in the 2nd innings for Sri Lanka, dismissing some important batters. That's when England struggled to form partnerships and could only manage to give a target of 219 runs. Vishwa Fernando also bowled well, taking three wickets. Jamie Smith scored 67 runs off 50 balls, which helped them put up a good score on the board. 

When Sri Lanka came into bat, Dimuth Karunaratne was dismissed cheaply, raising England's hopes of whitewashing the series. However, Nissanka (127 runs off 124 balls) had some other plans as he went on to hit a magnificent ton along with Mathews, who scored 32 runs off 61 balls. This victory will remain fresh in the minds of the Sri Lankan fans as it was an important win.  

Here's how fans reacted:

England Pathum Nissanka Sri Lanka
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