Opener underpins strong showing before Lions lose regular wickets in second innings

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jan-2023England Lions 413 for 8 dec and 164 for 8 (Robinson 39) lead SL President’s XI 355 for 9 dec (Madushka 150, Udara 93, Tongue 3-22) by 222 runsNishan Madushka’s 150 underpinned a strong reply from SL President’s XI on day two of their warm-up match against England Lions in Colombo. Madushka went along at close to a run a ball before retiring out, while wicketkeeper Lahiru Udara cracked 93 off 85 balls to repay the Lions for some of their aggression on day one.SL President’s XI eventually declared 58 runs behind but made deep inroads when the Lions batted again. The visitors, who scored at 6.16 an over in their first innings, were 63 for 4 second time around, before a counterattacking stand between Ollie Robinson and Liam Patterson-White, with the latter rattling off 39 from 25 balls.The Lions eventually closed on 164 for 8, leading by 222 ahead of the final day, with Jack Haynes and Josh Bohannon – who both made first-innings fifties – at the crease.The day began with Udara joining Madushka in the middle, and the pair put on a partnership worth 170 in 24 overs. Jack Carson removed Udara and Patterson-White picked up the second of his three wickets before Madushka retired out to leave SL President’s XI on 328 for 5. Josh Tongue then picked up three wickets in the space of four overs, to finish with tidy figures of 3 for 22.Lions captain Haseeb Hameed fell cheaply for the second time in the match, and Alex Lees added a 22-ball 27 to his first-innings hundred before retiring. Tom Haines and Lyndon James were both bowled by Sahan Arachchige, while Nimesh Vimukthi also picked up two-for as the Lions cracked on again, scoring at a rate of 5.29 while wickets tumbled.