Why did the players wear black bands in the ENG and SL first Test match?
The first test match between England and Sri Lanka was played in Manchester. England has decided to play the first test in Florida. Fast bowler Milan Ratnayake is making his debut for Sri Lanka in this match. Kumar Sangakkara gave him the graduation cap.
Why did the players wear black bands in the ENG and SL first Test match?
The Test series between England and Sri Lanka has started today on 21 August. The first Test is being played at Old Trafford in Manchester. The visiting team Sri Lanka won the toss and batted first. In this series, England has entered without captain Ben Stokes as he was injured while playing in The Hundred tournament a few days ago.
Dan Lawrence has been given the responsibility of opening in place of Jack Crowley. Crowley's finger was fractured in the series against West Indies. At the same time, fast bowler Milan Ratnayake is making his debut for Sri Lanka. Kumar Sangakkara handed him the debut cap. The photo of Sangakkara handing over the debut cap to Milan Ratnayake is now going viral on social media. With this, Milan became the 166th player to play Test cricket for Sri Lanka.
Why do players wear black armbands?
In this match, the players of both the teams came on the field wearing black bands. Players of both the teams were seen on the field wearing black bands to pay tribute to former England cricketer Graham Thorpe. Let us tell you, Thorpe died recently, a few days after which his wife confirmed that he had committed suicide. His wife had told that Thorpe was suffering from depression for a long time. Graham Thorpe was one of the best batsmen of England in his time, who did the great feat of playing 100 Test matches and then also became the batting coach of the England team after retirement.
Playing-11 of both teams
England: Dan Lawrence, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir.
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva (captain), Kamindu Mendis, Prabhat Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Milan Ratnayake.
