Gus Atkinson takes another five-wicket haul at Lord’s as England clinch series

Gus Atkinson’s love affair with Lord’s continued as his five-wicket haul lifted England to a fifth successive Test win of the summer and a series success over Sri Lanka.

Having already put his name on all three honours boards in just two outings at the home of cricket, Atkinson’s five for 62 helped bundle out Sri Lanka for 292 as England won the second Test by 190 runs.

Chris Woakes and Olly Stone each chipped in with a couple of wickets as England remained on course for a clean sweep of Test wins for the first time since 2004, having claimed a first triumph over Sri Lanka at Lord’s in 33 years.

Half-centuries from Dimuth Karunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva all held up England, who needed eight wickets on the penultimate day, but they seemed to be merely delaying the inevitable.

The one disappointment on a warm, sunny day was the sparse crowd. While tickets for under-16s were just GBP 15, the cheapest available for adults turning up on Sunday morning to watch England claim a first win in six attempts over these opponents at this ground – after five draws – were priced at GBP 95.