#OTD in 2014: Sri Lanka register maiden Test series victory in England

On this day in 2014, Sri Lanka won their first Test series in England in a thrilling manner at Headingley, Leeds. This fixture was the second and final red-ball fixture of the series.

Sri Lanka came into this series after winning a one-off T20I and five-match ODI series 3-2 against England and had the self-belief to continue the same momentum. 

In the first Test, both teams were quite competitive to play out a draw, and all eyes were on the second match, which was expected to find the winner of the series. 

The Alastair Cook-led side won the toss and elected to field first. Sri Lanka managed to post a total of 257 on the board, with the contribution of 79 and 45 from Kumar Sangakkara and Dinesh Chandimal, respectively. The fast bowler Liam Plunkett picked a five-wicket haul for the home team. 

Then, the youngster Sam Robson delivered a terrific knock of 127, with the duo of Gary Ballance and Bell scoring 74 and 64 to propel England to score 365 and take the lead of 108 runs. For the visitors, Shaminda Eranga and Angelo Mathews scalped four wickets each. 

Thereafter, the Sri Lanka team came up with improved performances with the bat and posted 457 on the board, and led by 349 runs. Mathews was sensational with a knock of 160, and Mahela Jayawardene hit 79. The valuable contribution of 48 from the spinner Rangana Herath had further enhanced the confidence of the touring party. 

Then, Dhammika Prasad made excellent use of the new ball in the last session to dismiss the batters, and England ended Day 4 with a scoreline of 57/5. 

The partnership between Joe Root and Moeen Ali played the first session of Day 5 cautiously. But the 67-run stand was broken by Pradeep when he dismissed Root for 31 off 108 balls. Soon, Matt Prior (10) gave away his wicket as well. 

Chris Jordan displayed resolve to score 21 off 62, comprising two fours, but Herath took his wicket and created a chance for Sri Lanka to have a shot at creating history. The left-arm spinner dismissed Stuart Broad for a 24-ball duck as well. 

With just two balls left in the match, Anderson had spent 81 minutes and was still at 0 off 54 balls.  

It was a terrific bouncer from Eranga to stun Anderson, who was ready for a good-length ball and was holed out in the short square-leg position. England lost the match by 100 runs, and Prasad was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka with five scalps. 

The entire Sri Lanka team went in jubilation to celebrate the historical maiden series victory in England. 

Mathews was named Player of the Match, while Anderson was adjudged as Player of the Series.