Sangakkara scores Test and ODI centuries within a fortnight

Kumar Sangakkara looked like becoming one of those great players who never made it onto the Test Honours Boards at Lord’s before striking 147 on his final Test appearance at the Ground in 2014.

His last two Test Matches at Lord’s saw him play as a batsman only, but on his first appearance in 2002 he took five catches as wicketkeeper in England’s first innings before adding one more and effecting a run out in their second. He only conceded a single bye in that innings as England ran up a total of 529 for 5 declared over 191 overs.

Sangakkara earned his place on the Honours Boards at the seventh attempt. His six previous innings at Lord’s had produced only one fifty. He had in his favour a good batting wicket, but against him huge pressure in the match after England declared on 575 for 9 shortly before tea on the second day. Coming in at 54 for 1, he shepherded Sri Lanka to the close without further loss. Kaushal Silva departed for 68 the next morning, but together with his great friend Mahela Jayawardene, Sangakkara put on 126, reaching his hundred that afternoon from 182 balls. When he was finally caught behind off Moeen Ali, he had been at the crease for seven and a half hours and although Sri Lanka’s innings finally ended 122 runs behind England, Sangakkara had helped to extend it into the fourth day, making a draw virtually inevitable.

Sangakkara reached his first Test hundred at Lord’s on 14 June 2014. Exactly two weeks earlier, on 31 May, he had made another international hundred at the Home of Cricket in rather more attacking style. His 112 from 104 balls in the fourth match of Sri Lanka’s One-Day International series against England brought his team victory by seven runs in a thrillingly close match. It was his final ODI appearance on the Ground. Although only one of his 38 Test centuries came at Lord’s, Sangakkara still boasts a batting average of 49.71 in Tests at the Ground alongside an ODI average of 50.66.