2nd Test Day 1 ENG 36/0 v SL 257

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

Vindicating Alastair Cook's decision to field first on winning the toss, England's bowlers swung the ball prodigiously, even in the sunshine.

The hosts could have bowled Sri Lanka out even more cheaply had they taken their chances - Kumar Sangakkara was let off on four occasions in making 79.

But when he became the first of Broad's three wickets in three balls - although the bowler was initially unaware of his feat - it sparked a collapse that saw the tourists lose their last five wickets for 29 runs.

Players to take two Test hat-tricks
Stuart Broad (England)	2011 v India & 2014 v Sri Lanka
Wasim Akram (Pakistan)	1999 v Sri Lanka & 1999 v Sri Lanka
Jimmy Matthews (Australia)	1912 v South Africa (in the same match)
Hugh Trumble (Australia)	1902 v England & 1904 v England

England's good day was completed when Cook and opening partner Sam Robson reached the close on 36-0, 221 behind.

For all the strength of their position, England were starting to come under pressure after tea as Sangakkara and Dinesh Chandimal, in as a replacement wicketkeeper for the injured Prasanna Jayawardene, shared an increasingly fluent sixth-wicket stand of 67.

In conditions offering enough for the bowlers to suggest a score in excess of 300 would be competitive, the tourists had pushed on to 228-5 and England were in danger of squandering the five wickets shared by Plunkett and James Anderson in the opening two sessions.

That was when Broad had got to work. Sangakkara, scorer of a century and a half-century in the drawn first Test at Lord's, was far less fluent in Leeds and the beneficiary of England mistakes.

Test Match Special analysis

Geoffrey Boycott Ex-England batsman & TMS summariser

"This was a better day than we had in the first four days at Lord's. There was a bit in it for the bowlers - occasionally the odd one swung and seamed - and you felt we had a game.

"England must have wondered if they had made the right decision. But wickets come in clusters here, though we won't know a good score until England have batted."

He would have been run out without scoring had Chris Jordan's throw hit the stumps, would have been caught behind off Plunkett had England appealed and offered a very difficult chance to Moeen Ali at point on 57.

However, the biggest error belonged to wicketkeeper Matt Prior, who dropped the left-hander on 27 after lunch, a simple chance that lodged in his chest then fell to the ground in his confusion over whether he had caught the ball.

Despite those let-offs, Sangakkara's driving through the off side was looking increasingly dangerous until he loosely went after a wide one from Broad and was well taken by a diving Ian Bell, in his 100th Test, at gully.

Broad then had Chandimal caught at first slip by Cook and Shaminda Eranga held by Prior to become only the second England bowler to take two Test hat-tricks after completing the feat against India in 2011.

In between, Plunkett - bowling much fuller on his home ground than on his return to the Test side at Lord's - produced a brute of a bouncer to have Dhammika Prasad gloving to a leaping Prior. In all, Sri Lanka lost four wickets for one run in nine balls.

That wicket gave Plunkett his best England figures, but having last man Nuwan Pradeep caught behind gave him a first five-wicket haul.

Swinging the ball at pace, he had earlier uprooted Dimuth Karunaratne's leg stump and, after lunch, had the chance for a hat-trick of his own when Mahela Jayawardene was well taken one-handed by Jordan at second slip and, from the next ball, Lahiru Thirimanne fended to short leg.

Leading Sri Lanka Test run scorers
Kumar Sangakkara	11,438 runs	124 Tests	Average 58.65
Mahela Jayawardene	11,414 runs	145 Tests	Average 50.06
Sanath Jayasuriya	6,973 runs	110 Tests	Average 40.07
Aravinda de Silva	6,361 runs	93 Tests	Average 42.97
Marvan Atapattu	5,502 runs	90 Tests	Average 39.02

Plunkett, who had been out of the Test side for seven years before his recall, said: "Eighteen months ago, I never dreamt of this. Now, I'm back in the team and it is important for me to show I can perform at this level.

"I feel like this is just a start. I feel confident and I back myself.

The right-armer, playing on his new Headingley home following a move from Durham in 2012, added: "To pick up five is a great feeling. A few of the Yorkshire guys were here and my mum and dad were here too, just back from holiday in Cyprus."

England were set in motion earlier by Anderson, who began swinging the ball as the sun burned off the clouds to have Kaushal Silva caught behind and, later, captain Angelo Mathews edging to third slip.

If Sri Lanka had the worst of the batting conditions, England were blessed by evening sunshine to allow Cook and Robson through to the close unbroken.

Noticeably cautious, Cook was reprieved when an edge off Eranga fell just short of Sangakkara at first slip.

He will return on 14, with Robson, in his second Test, unbeaten on 21, as England have the chance for the first-innings advantage on a pitch already showing signs of slow turn. 

ENG 36/0 (trail by 221 runs)

SL 257

FOW: Silva c Prior b Anderson 13 (SL 37/1) through him again... and this time with a fatal tickle! Silva hangs around, in two minds about reviewing, it was only a faint snick - but eventually he drags himself off. England finally strike lucky in the channel outside off, this didn't do much off the pitch and maybe that was the key, an audible tick as it whizzed through... though Hot Spot didn't seem to pick it up

Karunaratne b Plunkett 28 (SL 56/2) similar delivery but this swings a bit more as Karunaratne drove at it and cleans him up! The change works, that swung in a long way, darted between bat and pad and knocked out leg stump, a joy of a delivery for the bowler and a second strike for England.

Jayawardene c Jordan b Plunkett 22 (SL 108/3) edged and taken, superb one-handed catch at second slip! Nonchalant from Jordan, thrust out a paw to take a low edge and Plunkett is rewarded, Mahela taking the bullet for his mate Kumar. This was pitched up and inviting the drive, Jayawardene just wasn't quite forward enough

Thirimanne c Robson b Plunkett 0 (SL 108/4) dug in short and fended straight to short leg, gone first ball! Plunkett has wickets with consecutive deliveries - we won't be seeing Anderson after all. Inspired stuff from Plunkett, Thirimanne could see this zeroing in between his eyeballs, threw up the hands and it plopped off the splice into the hands of a gleeful Robson.

Mathews c Ballance b Anderson 26 (SL 161/5) good length on the off stump, poked at from the crease and nicks it to third slip! Solid low catch by Ballance for his first Test catch. Anderson has been in that fourth-stump area all day and here gets Mathews playing with hard hands just outside off, a little away wobble takes a thick outside edge and it carried low to the fielder's left boot.

Sangakkara c Bell b Broad 79 (SL 228/6) Sanga falls to a blinder of a catch at gully! Bell went to his left and got two hands to it, Sanga having thrown the hands through another drive... Perhaps he thought he was invincible, after all that had gone before, didn't need to chase that ball but the runs were flowing and the living was easy. And now he's back in the dressing room. 

Prasad c Prior b Plunkett 0 (SL 229/7) banged in and gloved through, another one gone! Plunkett gets his fourth, a sharp bouncer and Prasad saw his life flash before his eyes almost as quickly as the ball arrived, fended at it and the ball looped up for Prior to take above his head.

Chandimal c Cook b Broad 48 (SL 229/8) pitched up, draws the stroke and steered to slip! England have removed three in eight balls, Chandimal drawn an ill-judged drive, wasn't there for the shot and it just seamed a touch, thick edge straight to Cook.

Eranga c Prior b Broad 0 (SL 229/9) he's got it, edged through to Prior! Broad has a hat-trick spread over two overs! Broad hasn't realised, in fact, it looks as if the fact has passed everyone by... but Broad has three in three, Sanga with the last ball of the previous over, then two edges in two balls.

Pradeep c Prior b Plunkett 13 (SL 257 all out) got him, shortish and fenced through to the keeper - five-for for Plunkett on his home ground! The move to Yorkshire from Durham has transformed his career and those are Test-best figures for Plunkett, finally dislodging Pradeep after a brief flurry.

SL Batting Card

England's bowling figures

10.20: Morning all! After a tight draw at Lords, England & Sri Lanka go to Headingley in Leeds for the final battle in this series.

10.32: Toss won by England & will bowl first. 

10.38: England: 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Sam Robson, 3 Gary Ballance, 4 Ian Bell, 5 Joe Root, 6 Moeen Ali, 7 Matt Prior (wk), 8 Chris Jordan, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Liam Plunkett, 11 James Anderson

Sri Lanka: 1 Kaushal Silva, 2 Dimuth Karunaratne, 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Lahiru Thirimanne, 6 Angelo Mathews (capt), 7 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 8 Dhammika Prasad, 9 Rangana Herath, 10 Shaminda Eranga, 11 Nuwan Pradeep