Jennings has come of age

Galle – A Keaton Jennings (above) century helped England put Sri Lanka on the ropes in the first Test yesterday, setting the hosts a daunting 462 to win at notoriously low-scoring Galle.

England declared at 322/6 on day three with Jennings 146 not out after a patient innings that saw him deal deftly with the home side’s spin attack.

At the close of play, Sri Lanka were 15/0 with Dimuth Karunaratne on seven and Kaushal Silva on eight after hanging on for seven overs, with a further 447 to make at a ground where no team has successfully chased more than 99.

Jennings’ performance will go some way to silencing his critics – many of whom were calling for him to be dropped after his poor home series against India.

After stumps on Thursday the South Africa-born 26-year-old conceded that the past half year had been “tough for me personally”, but that he relishes the pressure.

“I enjoy it. I love the process of being involved,” he said. –