England v Sri Lanka in 2024: A series victory that posed as many questions as it answered for the hosts

England v Sri Lanka in 2024: John Etheridge

Test matches (3): England 2 (24pts), Sri Lanka 1 (12pts)

England beat Sri Lanka – no surprise there – but their 2–1 victory posed as many questions as it answered. Under a caretaker captain, Ollie Pope, they did not dominate their opponents as many expected, culminating in heavy defeat at The Oval, perhaps their worst performance since Brendon McCullum became coach. It meant their hopes of a clean sweep of Test victories in a home season for the first time since 2004 were dashed – though 5-1, after the whitewash of West Indies, was hardly a disaster.

Joe Root’s runs were vital in the first two Tests. He guided England home at Old Trafford with 62 not out, before making a century in each innings at Lord’s – first equalling, then passing, Alastair Cook’s England Test record of 33. Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith continued their stellar first summers, and Chris Woakes took 13 wickets at less than 20. But Atkinson alone managed better than a three-for, and only two batters averaged over 32.

Sri Lanka were 6-3 in the first innings of the series, and 1-2 in their second, but they often displayed resolve and skill, and their performance at The Oval – their first away win beyond Bangladesh or Zimbabwe for more than five years – confirmed their spirit. At Old Trafford, Kamindu Mendis, a technically correct left-hander who should have batted higher than No. 7, took his tally to three hundreds in his first four Tests, and added a half-century in both London games. At The Oval, Pathum Nissanka, strangely ignored in Manchester, swept Sri Lanka to victory with a dazzling 127 not out. Both impressed their batting coach, Ian Bell, once of England. Asitha Fernando, a bustling seamer, finished with 17 wickets, more than anyone on either side, and the combative Lahiru Kumara 11 from two games. And Sri Lanka’s resourcefulness was reflected by three of their players – Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Mendis and Nishan Madushka Fernando – keeping wicket.

With Ben Stokes tearing his left hamstring in The Hundred, Pope – the official vice-captain – was promoted, despite having led Surrey in just one first-class match, three years earlier. Harry Brook was named his deputy. Stokes attended every training session, and every day of every match, and was highly visible on the balcony. He promised not to be a back-seat driver, instead allowing Pope to captain as he wished, and offering advice only when asked. Pope certainly tried to lead in Stokes’s manner, always looking to attack, and sometimes reverting to short-pitched bowling with a spread field. In fact, he was criticised by some for being too aggressive at The Oval, as Sri Lanka sprinted to victory with a string of boundaries.

Pope scored just 30 runs in four innings, but then racked up 154 on his home ground, further evidence of his feast-or-famine batting. Brook and Ben Duckett scored a fifty each, but at times impatience seemed to get the better of them. There is a fine line between prudent aggression and recklessness. At The Oval, Brook crossed it, but he was not alone. Dan Lawrence, England’s reserve batter for the previous couple of years, was given a chance at the top of the order because Zak Crawley had broken a finger against West Indies. He was hopelessly miscast, his vulnerability outside off stump exposed. By the end, he was frequently charging down the pitch, swinging wildly – and often missing. It was painful to watch, and he was dropped for the tour of Pakistan.

As so often, then, it was left to Root to shore up England’s batting. At Lord’s, he scored twin centuries for the first time, and his second-innings hundred – from 111 balls – was his fastest. When he failed twice at The Oval, England lost. But he finished the home season with 666 runs at 74, his highest average in an English summer for a decade.

Smith recorded his maiden Test century, at Old Trafford, where he also took control of England’s fourth-innings chase, and batted with a compelling mixture of control and power. When operating with the tail at The Oval, after England collapsed, he advanced from 17 to 67 in just 17 balls. His glovework was decent, too, and his temperament calm: there was little obvious emotion when he reached three figures.

At Lord’s, Atkinson became the first England No.8 to make a century in a home Test since Peter Willey in 1980. Another five-wicket haul – following the 12 he had taken against West Indies – meant his first two Tests there had yielded 19 wickets (including three five-fors), two victories, two match awards and a maiden century. Altogether, he took 34 wickets in his first summer of Test cricket, and it was understandable that his pace dropped towards the end. Woakes’ steadiness and penetration with the new ball earned him a tour of Pakistan, despite a modest record overseas. Mark Wood bowled rapidly until he was forced out of the first Test in Manchester with a thigh niggle; the discovery of an elbow problem ruled him out for the rest of the year.

Matthew Potts and Olly Stone played two games each, both performing well on their Test comebacks, while England gave a debut at The Oval to Josh Hull, a seamer who had only just turned 20. Even by the standards of Bazball, it was a left-field selection. He had taken five wickets for England Lions in Sri Lanka’s only warm-up match, but his 2024 first-class numbers for Leicestershire had been two wickets at 182. There were comparisons with Shoaib Bashir’s inclusion on the Test tour of India earlier in the year, after ten wickets at 67 for Somerset. Hull, though, was perhaps England’s unlikeliest home pick since Darren Pattinson against South Africa in 2008. Born in Grimsby but brought up in Australia, Pattinson had been chosen after just 11 first-class matches, but had taken 29 wickets at 20 for Nottinghamshire that summer; he never played for England again. Hull, 6ft 7in and left-arm, showed some promise with the ball, but he felt discomfort in his thigh as the match progressed, suggesting a physical unreadiness for the demands of international cricket. He also dropped a dolly.

Three days before the third Test, McCullum was appointed white-ball coach from January 2025, on top of his existing role with the Test team. On the eve of the match, Stokes and Root were among the pall-bearers at Graham Thorpe’s funeral in nearby Southwark. It is unclear whether either of these events affected England’s performance, but two strong positions were tossed away. They were 261-3 in their first innings, and had Sri Lanka 93-5 in theirs, yet they contrived to lose by eight wickets, after surrendering their last 17 for 220. Sri Lanka’s bowlers found some swing – left-armer Vishwa Fernando had Root and Brook lbw in successive overs – and England played several ill-judged shots. Their attack then looked impotent, as Nissanka helped Sri Lanka knock off a target of 219 in just 40.3 overs. It was difficult to escape the conclusion that England had believed they would breeze to another win. The awakening was rude.

Sri Lanka’s touring party to England, 2024

*DM de Silva, LD Chandimal, AM Fernando, KNM Fernando, MVT Fernando, NT Gamage, NGRP Jayasuriya, FDM Karunaratne, CBRLS Kumara, AD Mathews, BKG Mendis, PHKD Mendis, P Nissanka, CAK Rajitha, RMMP Rathnayake, WSR Samarawickrama, JDF Vandersay, RTM Wanigamuni.

Head coach: ST Jayasuriya. Batting coaches: IR Bell, SHT Kandamby. Seam bowling coach: Aaqib Javed. Spin bowling coach: PK Wijetunge. Fielding coach: UDU Chandana. Throwdown specialist: DHM Istihaq. Fitness trainer: DC Fonseka. Physiotherapist: J Porter. Massage therapist: R Priyadarshana. Analyst: S Niroshana. Team manager: MB Halangoda. Selector on tour: BAW Mendis. Security manager: Maj. Gen. DBSN Bothota. Assistant security manager: T Dias.

England Lions v Sri Lankans at Worcester, August 14-17, 2024

England Lions won by seven wickets. Toss: England Lions. First-class debuts: F Ahmed, H Shaikh.

The Sri Lankans fielded their Test batters, keeper and spinner – Prabath Jayasuriya – but kept fast bowlers Asitha and Vishwa Fernando on ice for Manchester, preferring to use the game as an audition for the third seamer. Rathnayake seemed to have the edge over Kumara and Rajitha – but an Englishman outbowled them all. Zaman Akhter, a 25-year-old graduate of the South Asian Cricket Academy, had signed his first professional contract for Gloucestershire in 2023, and now swept the tourists aside on the first day, claiming five wickets with sustained pace. He was supported by Josh Hull, Leicestershire’s 19-year-old left-arm seamer, whose 3-30 were the best figures of his nascent career. England, powered by the fluent McKinney, and glued together by the sturdy Hamza Shaikh, were ahead by stumps, and next day Aldridge helped Shaikh add 104 for the seventh wicket. Facing a deficit of 185, Sri Lanka put up more of a fight, clearing the arrears four down; only Mendis and Chandimal failed a second time. But the last five fell for 40, Akhter again making key incisions, and the Lions were set just 122. Their youngest player, 16-year-old Farhan Ahmed (brother of Rehan), took three wickets on his first-class debut.

First Test at Manchester, August 21-24, 2024

Nicholas Brookes

England won by five wickets. England 12pts. Toss: Sri Lanka. Test debut: RMMP Rathnayake.

This game posed several intriguing questions. England’s first in the Brendon McCullum era without Ben Stokes, nursing a hamstring injury, was a trial of how deeply Bazball’s blood ran through his team’s veins. Could Pope maintain the relentless cricket which had made England so compelling? Could Lawrence thrive as a makeshift opener in the absence of Zak Crawley? And could Sri Lanka – unseen in whites on these shores for eight summers – provide a proper challenge?

Across four absorbing days, these questions faded into the long grass of the outfield, as one man assumed centre-stage. Jamie Smith’s mature and often marvellous batting ensured England’s never-ending wicketkeeper debate would, for now at least, be put to bed. After a dazzling debut series against West Indies, this was his crowning glory – and a place higher at No.6, too, because England had brought in an extra bowler, Potts.

An unfussy first-innings hundred kept the hosts in control. At 24 years 42 days, Smith was England’s youngest wicketkeeper to reach a Test century, beating Les Ames (at Port-of-Spain in 1929/30) by three weeks. Yet his 39-run cameo on the fourth and final day was just as impressive, and equally important. Where Root and Brook had been restrained during an exacting chase of 205, Smith turned the tide, easing tension, sapping the fight from Sri Lanka, and emphatically declaring this Test done.

At several stages, it looked as if there would be no contest at all. When the coin fell de Silva’s way under blue skies, he had no hesitation in batting. Yet by the time play got going, the clouds had rolled in: Karunaratne edged a pull off Atkinson, Madushka Fernando drove Woakes to first slip, and Mathews was lbw playing no stroke. With Sri Lanka 6-3, many feared the worst.

Their trauma was not over. Wood’s introduction brought pain, both physical and psychological: his first delivery put Chandimal on the seat of his pants; in his next over, drawing sharp bounce, he struck Kusal Mendis on the thumb, the ball looping to slip. Bashir trapped Chandimal with a shooter and, after lunch, Woakes – operating round the wicket – had Kamindu Mendis caught behind. When Atkinson induced another flat-footed waft, from Jayasuriya, it was 113-7.

But whenever Sri Lanka were down, they conjured resilience. And, throughout the game, batting became simpler once the ball lost its shine. Despite the tumble of wickets, de Silva counter-punched crisply, keeping the scoreboard ticking without undue risk. He found support from debutant seamer Milan Rathnayake, who said he had not slept a wink on the eve of the Test. Yet he was sharp and assiduous at the crease, showing a diligence which had eluded more experienced team-mates. While de Silva was in, Rathnayake was watchful; once his captain fell, turning Bashir to leg slip, he grew into his innings, bringing up a half-century with six off Bashir over long-on. He flew past his highest first-class score (59), and set a record for a Test debutant at No.9, beating Balwinder Sandhu’s 71 for India at Hyderabad, Pakistan, in 1982/83. His gutsy knock dragged Sri Lanka towards 236.

Bad light obliged de Silva to open with spin that evening, before the second morning was washed out. After an early lunch, Asitha Fernando bowled with spirit, trapping Duckett on review in the third over, then uprooting Pope’s off stump with a beauty in the fifth. Lawrence’s first Test innings as opener ended with a loose prod on 30, but when Root and Brook threatened to take the game away – and the other seamers fell flat – Asitha roared back with the older ball. The son of a fisherman, he used squally conditions to his advantage, reversing it into the right-handers, then tempting Root to nibble at a straight one.

Jayasuriya had arrived with a reputation, having bagged 71 wickets in his first 12 Tests. Still, there were doubts about whether he could thrive away from Galle, where his haul was 53, and he struggled at first. After tea, though, he changed the mood with two magic deliveries. The first, a ripper which pitched on leg and spun viciously to take off stump, left Brook – untroubled during his 56 – bemused. The second, which bowled Woakes, was almost a replica. Smith seemed unfazed. Early in his innings, he had shimmied down the pitch and struck Jayasuriya for six. He racked up runs without seeming to hurry, and by nightfall had 72, with barely a shot in anger. At 259-6, England led by 23.

Smith’s quest for a maiden Test hundred was helped by Sri Lankan sloppiness on a chilly third morning. They were late coming out, and unsure about bowlers’ ends; the man at short leg forgot his shin pads. It proved ominous: they were shoddy with the ball, slack in the field. They had few ideas about how to get Smith out, and apparently less inclination. Clearly, they wanted to bowl at the tail, but allowing him to ease to three figures was unforgivable with the match on the line. His modest celebration was another sign of maturity. And while Smith eventually fell for 111, lashing at a wider ball from Jayasuriya, Wood made hay, helping England open up a lead of 122.

Once again, Sri Lanka’s top order could not handle early movement. Madushka Fernando shouldered arms to one from Woakes that nipped back to hit the top of middle, while Kusal Mendis pushed tentatively at Atkinson: at 1-2, they looked finished, and Wood’s introduction wreaked further havoc. He removed Karunaratne with his first ball, and four overs later sent Chandimal to hospital, after a shuddering blow to his right thumb. When de Silva was trapped by one that scurried through from Potts – who, in his first Test for over a year, had been unthreatening on the opening day – Sri Lanka had stumbled to 95-4.

Where others might have retreated into their shell, Kamindu Mendis came out fighting. Mathews doggedly occupied the crease, but his partner was quick to attack – hooking Wood into the stands, using his feet against Bashir, pouncing on width. For much of the third afternoon, the pair proceeded untroubled. And their hopes were boosted by two injury developments: Chandimal would be able to bat, after scans revealed no fracture, and Wood left the field with a thigh strain.

A ball change in the 42nd over produced another twist. Suddenly, a shinier replacement was hooping around corners: two chances were spilled, before Woakes had Mathews caught at point. After play, the tourists’ batting coach Ian Bell was diplomatic; next morning, Mathews was forthright. “It looked like they were running out of plans,” he said. “We were told they didn’t have enough old balls. Once the ball was changed, it was a whole different game.”

Even so, Kamindu kept Sri Lanka in contention, striking Atkinson through the covers three times in an over, and completing an excellent hundred just before lunch. He and the brave Chandimal lifted Sri Lanka to a lead of 204. Armed with the second new ball, England were relieved to take the last four wickets for 19. But, given the up-and-down nature of the pitch, and the slowness of the outfield, the Test was back on.

When England slipped to 70-3, including Pope – toe-ending a reverse sweep – their position felt nervy for the first time in the game. Yet, under pressure, they adapted: gone was the all-guns-blazing approach of Bazball, with Root and Brook reverting to steady accumulation, adding 49 in 117 balls. Their caution put Smith’s revelry into sharp focus. Jayasuriya was forced twice in two balls to the leg-side fence, and soon pulled for six. When Vishwa Fernando dropped short, he too was swatted away. Smith’s stay was just over an hour, but it transformed the match.

After surviving a close lbw shout, Root wandered down the wicket and blasted England over the line with only his second four; his unbeaten 62 had taken 128 balls. They had been tested – more than anyone had predicted. Those who had turned up for the denouement left with a hunger for the rest of the series, and that alone was reason to be cheerful.

Player of the match: J. L. Smith.
Attendance: 56,970.

Second Test at Lord’s, August 29-September 1, 2024

Hugh Chevallier

England won by 190 runs. England 12pts. Toss: Sri Lanka.

Soon after tea on the first day, England were in a spot of bother at 216-6. Only one man, it seemed, could save them from a feeble total on a pitch so well behaved it might have greeted incoming batters with a doffed cap and a how-do-you-do. Not for the first time, that man was Root; not for the last, he was one shot from a century.

For 12 anxious deliveries, he was stuck on 99. But, from the lucky 13th, he steered the ball neatly between slip and gully, and celebrated Test hundred No.33, taking him level with Alastair Cook as England’s most prolific centurion. It was a glorious innings, full of deft guides, silky drives, crisp sweeps and rasping pulls. He eventually made a Horlicks of a reverse scoop, giving Sri Lanka a glimmer of hope at 308 for seven. Root had scored 143, so any culpability was offset. Five of the other six wickets were also self-inflicted, but colleagues had no such get-out.

Lawrence was first, walking down the pitch and wafting behind for nine. Next came Pope who, after failure in Manchester, needed a score. He had just a single when he tried to pull a ball from outside off: the skyer was coolly caught by de Silva. Third was Duckett, lofting a reverse sweep to the square boundary, before an unusually leaden-footed Smith nicked to the keeper. Then Woakes lazily sent the ball to deep backward square. The exception was Brook, beaten by one from the persevering Asitha Fernando that moved down the slope.

There was, in fact, another batter who could (and did) save England from themselves. The No.8 who joined Root in the evening session might have been Potts or Stone – both were averaging at least 35 for the first-class season – but was Atkinson, who had just nudged his own average for the summer past ten. He rarely batted so high even for Surrey, and had only three professional fifties, the best 91 on a Guildford featherbed against a Sri Lankan Development XI. No one had any inkling what was coming.

Having seen Root to history, Atkinson opened his shoulders – and middled ball after ball. He took a liking to Jayasuriya’s left-arm spin and twice deposited him into the stands; he caressed Fernando through the covers. He and Root added 92, with Atkinson the faster. Narrow the eyes, and it was hard to discern who had more than 12,000 Test runs, and who just over 100.

By the third session of a warm first day, Sri Lanka’s four frontline bowlers were tiring, and Atkinson exploited anything wayward, showing neither fear nor mercy. If he was unsettled by losing Root with the new ball in sight, he hid it well. By stumps, he and Potts had guided England to 358 for seven, and towards control.

The day had begun with a flurry of raised eyebrows brushing Panamas. As the sun beat down, de Silva won the toss – and chose to bowl. While he apparently saw moisture that would encourage early movement, others saw the hand of Sanath Jayasuriya: outrageously attacking as a player, less so as coach. The decision at least ensured Sri Lanka could not be 6-3 in a trice, as they were at Old Trafford. Showing more composure than he would with the bat, Pope did well not to dance a jig of delight.

The tourists made two changes. Left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando gave way to the bustling Kumara, whose right-arm pace added energy and enthusiasm, though not variety. Nissanka, meanwhile, came in for Kusal Mendis, as they again fielded seven batters – a policy that absurdly had Kamindu Mendis at No.7. With Chandimal nursing a sore thumb, Madushka Fernando kept wicket on the first two days. For their part, England echoed the architectural shift of the Middle Ages, and replaced Wood with Stone, despite doubts over his durability. Mark Wood had been ruled out after suffering a thigh strain at Manchester, while Stone these days played with two metal screws in his back.

On another perfect morning, old pros opined that Atkinson’s path from overnight 74 to maiden century should start with circumspection. The young pro disagreed, and hit the first two balls of the day for four: Lord’s abuzz. The third thudded into his pads, and Kumara had him lbw: Lord’s aghast. The review came quickly, and had the ball missing by a wide margin: Lord’s a-leaping.

Well as Atkinson batted the day before, he was even better now. An elegant crack through the covers took him to 99 and, three deliveries later, a commanding off-drive brought up a century, from 103 balls. He had moved unfussily to 118 when an astonishing innings had an astonishing end: a short delivery from Asitha was pummelled to the midwicket boundary, where Rathnayake – diving towards the Grand Stand – clung on, despite the ball zipping over his left shoulder. England were soon dismissed for 427. Given the flatness of the track, the bowlers had stuck to their task, none more than Asitha, who emerged with a five-for. The Sri Lankan catching, meanwhile, was exemplary.

Less so the hosts’: in the third over, Smith and Root watched an edge from Madushka whistle between them; other errors followed. But the bowlers were extracting more movement – and hitting a fuller length – than their opponents, and the Sri Lankan openers paid the price for playing away from their body when they chopped on. Pope handled his attack intelligently, and batters twice found shrewdly placed fielders: Nissanka guided Stone to leg slip, and Chandimal later deflected Atkinson to leg gully. By then Potts had grabbed two in a double-wicket maiden, the first a beauty that castled Mathews after angling in and seaming away. Sri Lanka were up against it at 87-6.

But there was a thorn in England’s side sharp enough to force a change of tack. Stone was chosen to deploy the short stuff – and Mendis was up for the challenge. It proved an eventful contest. A heave for six bounced through the MCC committee room window; in Stone’s next over, Root dropped a skyer at deep square leg. Four balls later, a top edge flew high into the Pavilion and struck a spectator on the full. There was a short delay as he received medical attention, and he later watched with a large ice bag pressed against his head. The over had one delivery left, and it spelled the end of Kumara, undone by a direct hit from Pope. Atkinson then wrapped things up when Mendis holed out, having briefly taken his Test average back above 100.

Despite a lead of 231, Pope chose to bat again. In the sixth over, Joel Wilson turned down an appeal for caught behind against Lawrence. The sound might have been pad – Ultra Edge was inconclusive – so it felt harsh for third umpire Chris Gaffaney to overturn the decision. In truth, Lawrence looked out of his depth. Next morning, under unexpectedly sullen skies, Duckett went early, and Ollie Pope lollipopped a short ball to deep cover. Runs, though, were not in short supply: Brook and Smith produced entertaining cameos, while Root scored freely, dancing down to loft Jayasuriya over mid-on, or dabbing the seamers behind square.

As he neared yet another hundred, it looked as if he might run out of partners. Still 12 short when Potts was eighth to fall, Root was grateful for Stone’s flinty resolve. He slowed a little as the landmark neared, then carved Kumara through cover. At 111 balls, it was the fastest of his 34 hundreds, and the ground rose to salute a towering achievement. The innings ended with two magnificent boundary catches as England batted on – and Sri Lanka fought on. The target, however, was 483 in seven sessions.

In a series of top-order frailty, it took until the eighth over for a wicket, the longest opening stand so far. And when Nissanka departed at 43 for two – a 200th catch for Root – the writing was on the wall. Not that many could see it: the murk had grown thicker and, though there were 26 overs left in the day, in came Jayasuriya, promptly dubbed a light-watchman. Pope toyed with spin for six overs until, with Sri Lanka 53-2, he said he would revert to pace, prompting an early close.

Next day, the clouds had lifted – if not the gloom. When play began, it was to a pitiful Sunday crowd (said to number 9,000, though it felt fewer). There were several possible causes: in the Bazball era, many were unwilling to gamble on a fourth day; the Sri Lankan batting had hardly set the world alight; and most schools returned the following morning. Oh, and adult tickets cost between £80 and £125 (compared with £35–£60 for the finals of The Hundred a fortnight earlier).

Whether it was the empty seats, the lack of jeopardy – the target was never under threat – or the start of meteorological autumn, the cricket had a meandering feel, the champagne gone flat. In fact, Sri Lanka put up a decent fight, with three battling half-centuries, though not for the talented Mendis, languishing at No.8 after Jayasuriya’s promotion, and dismissed under 60 for only the third time in his nine innings. Bashir could find little in the pitch, and the seamers worked hard for their wickets. Once more, they were led by Atkinson, the Lord’s anointed, whose affection for this ground grew ever deeper: his five-for was his third in four innings. Pope’s numbers were less impressive. His DRS record as captain was eight failures from eight reviews. More importantly, he had secured the series from just two Tests.

Player of the match: AAP Atkinson.
Attendance: 93,256.

Third Test at The Oval, September 6-9, 2024

Lawrence Booth

Sri Lanka won by eight wickets. Sri Lanka 12pts. Toss: Sri Lanka. Test debut: JO Hull.

Twenty-six years after their only previous Test at The Oval, Sri Lanka stormed South London once more. While Muttiah Muralitharan (16 wickets back in 1998) was watching on TV at home in Colombo, Sanath Jayasuriya (double-century) returned as interim head coach. “It’s a place we never forget,” he said after his team had scuppered English hopes of a first perfect Test summer for two decades. And they had a new hero: Nissanka’s aggregate of 191 off 175 balls was on a par with Jayasuriya’s 237 off 295. It included that rarity among visitors to England – a fourth-innings, match-winning hundred. For the first time, Bazball England had scored more slowly in a home Test than their opponents. Yet Pope knew his side had blown at least two gilt-edged opportunities to make it 3-0. “We shot ourselves in the foot,” he said, while denying his team had been complacent. Their cricket told a different story.

The suspicion they were taking Sri Lanka lightly was not helped by the selection of Josh Hull, a 6ft 7in Leicestershire left-armer whose first-class record amounted to 16 wickets at 62. He did not bowl badly, but at a crucial moment dropped de Silva at mid-on – a gentle offering that would have left Sri Lanka 152-6, still 173 behind. It was an advantage even England, in this careless mood, would have been unlikely to squander.

Part of the problem, perhaps, was an emphatic first day that seemed sure to lead to another victory. On winning a third toss in a row, de Silva had inserted England under saturnine skies, and watched his four-strong seam attack – left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando had replaced left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya – spray it all round Kennington. Their only respites came when Lawrence messed up a pull shot, and when umpires Wilson and Gaffaney decided, at 12.19, that the light was suddenly unplayable. With rain still an hour away, and a crowd of 25,000, it was a miserable ruling.

Once play resumed nearly four hours later, Duckett scooped and upper-cut two sixes in an over off Kumara, having never hit even one off a Test seamer. But when he tried a ramp, off Rathnayake, he spooned a catch to the wicketkeeper, his 86 off 79 balls entertaining but unfulfilled; Root, twin centurion at Lord’s, tamely picked out deep backward square. Pope, however, looked hell-bent on putting his poor run behind him. He nailed an early pull for six – a shot that had cost him in the Second Test – and cheerfully exploited the gaps in Sri Lanka’s cordon. When he eased his 102nd ball through the covers, off Asitha Fernando, he became the first to score his first seven Test hundreds against different opponents. It was also England’s fastest at The Oval since Gilbert Jessop (76 balls, still their fastest anywhere) against Australia in 1902. At stumps, they were 221 for three, made at five an over.

Next morning came the first indication they had taken their eye off the ball. Brook mocked Sri Lanka’s tactics of aiming wide of off, pretending to take guard on an imaginary sixth stump. If that looked disrespectful, his strokeplay was little better. Having survived a slash off Rathnayake to Asitha at deep point on 12, he drove the same bowler to cover seven runs later. It was a simple trap, too easily sprung. And it made no apparent difference to the rest. Smith chipped to mid-wicket, Woakes to extra; Atkinson fell slog-sweeping, as if his own Lord’s century had been a mirage. Pope might have stopped the rot, but pulled Vishwa to deep square leg, to depart for 154 off 156. With the tail supine, England lost six for 35 in less than ten overs.

Still, 325 wasn’t bad after being put in and, for a while, their collapse didn’t seem to matter – despite another bad-light farce. The ball after Karunaratne was run out by Stone’s direct hit from cover following an optimistic call from Nissanka, the umpires ruled that Woakes could continue only if he turned his arm to off-spin. To the incredulity of Stokes up in the dressing-room, he did so for four deliveries, costing six runs, before the light returned to acceptable levels. Soon, 70-1 became 93-5, with Stone accounting for Mathews and Chandimal – Sri Lanka’s two middle-order veterans – in his first two overs. Among those wickets was a first for Hull, as Woakes dived thrillingly to his right at mid-off to send back Nissanka for a 51-ball 64. Again, England were cruising.

But overly aggressive fields allowed scoring outlets for de Silva and Kamindu Mendis and, as the players emerged into the gloom after tea, the umpires offered Pope a choice: bowl spin, or go off for bad light. Influenced in part by another full house, he stayed on – and would have looked prescient as well as public-spirited had de Silva not been reprieved on 23. Instead, England allowed Sri Lanka to add 69 untroubled runs in 17 overs of spin, six from the part-timer, Lawrence. When, at 5.35, the umpires declared it too dark for anyone to bowl, the tourists were 211-5, and the door – previously shut – was now ajar.

England exerted control once more the following morning. Once more, they relinquished it. Hull bounced out de Silva, caught by Bashir at fine leg for 69, and swung one into the pads of Vishwa – two dismissals aided by the left-arm angle that had caught the selectors’ eye. In between, Woakes induced a drive from Kamindu, whose dismissal for 64 lowered his Test average to 77. Soon, Sri Lanka were all out for 263, collapses of four for 23 and five for 43 sandwiching a stand of 127.

When England raced to 20-0, a lead of 82, victory looked inevitable. That, at least, was how they batted. Duckett was caught trying to loft Asitha over mid-on, and Pope chopped on in the last over before lunch. Meanwhile, Lawrence was attacking the bowling like a condemned man his final meal. His fate was confirmed when he charged at Kumara, and edged behind for a shot-a-ball 35. Unsure whether to celebrate or take umbrage at Lawrence’s approach, Kumara did both, sending him on his way with a mouthful.

More serenely, Root eased Vishwa through the covers to overtake Kumar Sangakkara’s 12,400 Test runs, and move into sixth in the all-time list. But the calm was momentary. Anodyne until now, Vishwa swung a low full toss into Root’s pads, then pinned Brook next over with another inswinger; panicking, or perhaps incredulous, England wasted two reviews. Woakes edged Kumara and, when Atkinson was trapped by Rathnayake, it was 82-7, and the advantage just 144. For the first time, Sri Lanka were favourites.

Smith responded murderously, hammering 52 off 18 balls, only to pull the last before tea to mid-wicket. It was a poor piece of judgment: with their lead now 202, half an hour more of his brutality might have done the job. Emboldened, Sri Lanka finished it, with substitute wicketkeeper Nishan Madushka Fernando (who had lost his place in the top order to Kusal Mendis, but come on when Chandimal hurt his back) catching Stone and Bashir. Kumara had four for 21, England had been bowled out in 34 overs – their shortest completed innings under McCullum – and the tourists needed 219. Only eight visiting teams had made more to win a Test in England.

They wasted no time. Nissanka took two fours from the first over, while Karunaratne became the fourth Sri Lankan to pass 7,000 Test runs. And though he soon fell to a return catch by Woakes, who lunged forward after the ball looped off inside edge and pad, Sri Lanka made effortless progress to 94 for one by stumps. Helped by an injury to Atkinson, bowling through a thigh niggle, they had grasped the Test by its scruff.

The fourth day dawned grey, encouraging English thoughts of a seam-and-swing fightback – more so when Kusal hooked Atkinson to fine leg, where Bashir took a flying catch. But Nissanka was batting with flair and confidence, and Mathews was not for budging. England looked spent, tired by a long summer, perhaps deflated by their own fecklessness. Nissanka brought up a sparkling century, his second in Tests, from 107 balls, with a back-foot punch for three off Atkinson, and hurried his team towards victory before lunch with a pair of hooked sixes off Stone. The Sri Lankans rejoiced in only their fourth win in 21 attempts on British soil, while England – castigated by former captains in the commentary box – reflected on their worst performance of the Bazball era, and wondered how on earth they had let it slip.

Player of the match: P Nissanka.
Attendance: 91,944.
Players of the series: England – JE Root; Sri Lanka – PHKD Mendis.