Sri Lanka all-rounder Kamindu Mendis, who came as a savior for his team against England, became a superstar with a memorable 100 off 167 balls at Old Trafford Stadium in Manchester. This 25-year-old youngster has certainly laid the foundation for a bright future. At such a young age, he joins the ranks of players like Kapil Dev, Rishabh Pant, and Ravindra Jadeja, as he became the seventh Asian player to score a hundred while batting at number 7 or below on English soil. This was Mendis’s third Test hundred.
Asian batters to score a hundred on English soil (batting at number 7)
| Player | Nationality |
|---|---|
| Kapil Dev | Indian |
| Sandeep Patil | Indian |
| Anil Kumble | Indian |
| Ajit Agarkar | Indian |
| Ravindra Jadeja | Indian |
| Rishabh Pant | Indian |
| Kamindu Mendis | Sri Lankan |
Kamindu Mendis hundred vs England
Walked out to bat after the 26th over, with England dominating the Manchester ground and Sri Lanka tumbling at 95 for four. First, Angelo Mathews (78) and now Dinesh Chandimal, currently posting a scintillating 101-run partnership, pushed the team to a lead of 169 runs on day four of the second innings. Also, with sloppy England fielding that dropped catches of both Mendis and Mathews off Matthew Potts’ deliveries, it will be interesting to see how the remaining day four and day five behave. The trends suggest that seamers will rule the ground on day five, which means that putting a good total on the board and striking early with the Sri lanka bowlers could produce a shocker for England at Manchester.
