Pathum Nissanka's century powers Sri Lanka to historic Test win over England

Pathum Nissanka's outstanding unbeaten century led Sri Lanka to a commanding eight-wicket victory over England in the third Test at The Oval on Monday.

Chasing a target of 219, Sri Lanka comfortably reached the total with two wickets down before lunch on the fourth day, with Nissanka unbeaten on 127 and Angelo Mathews contributing 32 not out in an unbroken 111-run stand.

This triumph marked Sri Lanka's fourth Test victory in England and their first since their famous win at Headingley in 2014. Despite this victory, England secured the series 2-1 after winning the first two Tests at Old Trafford and Lord's.

Resuming the day at 94-1, Sri Lanka had already set the foundation to end their streak of seven consecutive Test defeats against England. Nissanka, who was 53 not out overnight, played confidently to notch his second fifty of the match, following a first-innings score of 64. However, Sri Lanka lost Kusal Mendis early in the morning session when he mistimed a hook off Gus Atkinson, leaving Sri Lanka at 108-2.

Mathews, with memories of his famous 160-run innings at Headingley a decade ago, came in to stabilize the chase. England captain Ollie Pope introduced off-spinner Shoaib Bashir in an attempt to disrupt the partnership, but the move backfired as both Nissanka and Mathews attacked the spinner, adding 10 runs in an over.

Nissanka brought up his century in style, cutting Chris Woakes to the boundary before dispatching Olly Stone for two consecutive sixes. His composed 107-ball hundred included 11 fours, with his final boundary against Bashir sealing the win for Sri Lanka.

England, coming off a dominant 3-0 series sweep against the West Indies, squandered strong positions throughout the match. Despite a first-innings lead of 62, their second-innings collapse from 82-7 to 156 all out left them vulnerable. Sri Lankan pacers Lahiru Kumara (4-21) and Vishwa Fernando (3-40) tore through England's lineup, with only Jamie Smith's aggressive 67 providing resistance.

This defeat dashed England's hopes of a clean sweep in their home campaign, as they failed to replicate their dominance in the final Test.