Kusal's century brought new life to Sri Lanka Cricket, which had been in decline.

The Sri Lankan cricket team, currently on tour in England, managed to put on their strongest batting display of the tour in the second ODI match held at Headingley Cricket Ground in Leeds. Winning the toss and opting to bat first, the Sri Lankan team amassed a formidable total of 321 runs for 6 wickets at the end of their allotted 50 overs, setting England a target of 322 runs to win the match in their reply innings.

With England leading the series 1-0 after winning the first match by 89 runs, they will need to record their highest successful chase against Sri Lanka to achieve this winning target. Currently, England has made a rapid start, scoring 81 runs without losing any wickets in the first 9.5 overs of their innings.

The main highlight of the Sri Lankan innings was captain Kusal Mendis' magnificent century. Kusal scored 121 runs off 100 balls, including 14 fours and 3 sixes, marking his 7th ODI century and his first ODI century recorded outside Asia. During this innings, he also surpassed the 5,000-run mark in his ODI career. Kusal made the most of a dropped catch by Gus Atkinson when he was on 17 runs, and successfully overturned an umpire's dismissal decision via the DRS when on 99, completing his century with a cover drive off Jamie Overton's bowling. An over from Josh Tongue, where he hit 3 fours and a six to score 19 runs, became the most productive over of the tour. He was eventually dismissed attempting a slog sweep off Rehan Ahmed's googly, giving a catch to Tom Banton. International media, including BBC and Sky Sports, praised this innings as a brilliant attacking performance of captaincy,

Former player Russel Arnold stated that this performance showed how a struggling team was revived with the captain leading from the front.

Beyond individual brilliance, this innings was a result of a collective batting effort, with a crucial 137-run partnership for the second wicket between Kusal and Kamindu Mendis (54 runs) built over 120 balls. Additionally, Pathum Nissanka contributed 25 runs, Pawan Rathnayake 48 runs (run out by the combined efforts of Joe Root and Jos Buttler), Charith Asalanka 11 runs, Janith Liyanage 32 runs, Dunith Wellalage an unbeaten 16 runs, and Sachinda Colombage an unbeaten 3 runs, all helping to boost the innings. The Sri Lankan innings, which stood at 237 for 4 wickets at the end of 40 overs, managed to score a rapid 84 runs in the final 10 overs, making this Sri Lanka's highest first innings total against England in an ODI match since 2018.

In the first ODI match held in Chester-le-Street, the Sri Lankan team, chasing a target of 266 on a difficult pitch, was restricted to 176 runs in 37 overs, with Will Jacks taking 5 wickets for 22 runs. However, on the Headingley pitch, which offered good bounce, Sri Lankan batsmen played with a higher attacking tempo, frequently hitting boundaries in the middle overs. In England's bowling, Gus Atkinson took 2 wickets for 55 runs, Rehan Ahmed took 2 wickets for 48 runs, and Jofra Archer took one wicket for 68 runs, while Jamie Overton and Josh Tongue were unable to take any wickets.

Wanindu Hasaranga has been ruled out of the entire series due to an injury, and Eshan Malinga was called into the Sri Lankan squad today as a replacement for Dushmantha Chameera. It is noteworthy that another Malinga is playing for the team today, recalling how Sri Lanka defeated England at this very ground during the 2019 World Cup, thanks to Lasith Malinga's bowling. Pathum Nissanka, Kamindu Mendis, Kusal Mendis, Pawan Rathnayake, Charith Asalanka, Janith Liyanage, Dunith Wellalage, Sachinda Colombage, Eshan Malinga, Asitha Fernando, and Dilshan Madushanka are included in the Sri Lankan XI, while England plays the same XI as the previous match without any changes. Tom Banton and Ben Duckett, who opened England's innings, have made a rapid start, and the final and third ODI match between the two teams is scheduled to be held at The Oval on September 27th.