Manchester [UK], August 25 (ANI): Following his side’s five wicket win over Sri Lanka, England captain Ollie Pope lauded batters Joe Root and Jamie Smith for their match-winning performances, going on to call the former a “greedy Yorkshire man” for his hunger for runs.
Root starred with a calm half-century during a tense run-chase while Smith smashed his maiden Test ton in the first innings to hand England a massive lead of 122 runs in the first innings, which proved to be instrumental in team’s win.
Speaking in the post-match presentation, Pope said that the pitch suited new ball bowlers and lauded pacers Chris Woakes and Gus Atkinson for their performances.
“I think it was the kind of pitch that suited new ball and we knew once we got past the 15-20 overs, we could really cash in. Credit to the bowlers for the way they led from the front, Woakes and Gus (Atkinson) managed to get them three down early on. I think that was very crucial,” said Pope.
On Root and Smith, Pope said that the veteran batter brought calm to the dressing room while a young wicketkeeper-batter showed immense calmness so early in his Test career.
“Everyone likes him (Root) when he is walking on the field, he is a greedy Yorshire man, there was a sense of calmness when he was out there, everyone had full confidence in him. There are always a few nerves early on in your Test career, but I knew he (Smith) had the calmness to deal with it. He has transformed his form in the Test arena, could not be any more happier for him,” said the skipper.
On his captaincy experience for England in absence of Ben Stokes, Pope said that he enjoyed it and was able to read the game well enough to help his team get all 20 wickets.
“It was tough to bowl on that pitch after 15-20 overs, it was taxing, but that is always going to be the case,” he concluded.
Coming to the match, SL won the toss and opted to bat first. Struggling at 113/7, it was knocks from skipper Dhananjaya de Silva (74 in 84 balls, with eight fours) and Milan Rathnayake (72 in 135 balls, with six fours and two sixes) that pushed SL to 236/10.
Chris Woakes (3/32) and Shoaib Bashir (3/55) were the top bowlers for England.
Despite a poor start and a tricky score of 67/3, fine performances from middle order batters Joe Root (42 in 57 balls with four boundaries), Harry Brook (56 in 73 balls with four boundaries), centurion Jamie Smith (111 in 148 balls, with eight fours and a six) helped England attain a lead of 122 runs as they were bundled out for 358 runs.
Ashitha Fernando (4/103) and Prabhat Jayasuriya (3/85) delivered fine spells for Sri Lanka.
In their second innings, SL once again found themselves in a troublesome position, with the score reading 95/4. However, veterans Angelo Matthews (65 in 145 balls, with two fours and a six), Dinesh Chandimal (79 in 119 balls, with seven fours) formed a 78-run partnership to push SL towards a lead. Later, keeping his fine form, Kamindu Mendis slammed his second Test ton in five innings, scoring 113 in 183 balls, with 15 fours and a six. SL put up a total of 326/10, giving them a respectable lead of 204 runs.
Woakes and Matthew Potts (3/47) took fine three wickets each to lead England bowling charts.
In reply, England was in a tight position at 70/3. However, Root’s calm and composed half-century (62* in 128 balls with two fours) and solid contributions from Brook (32 in 68 balls, with three fours) and Smith (39* in 48 balls, with four boundaries and a six) took England to a five wicket win.
England take a 1-0 lead in two-match series.
Smith took home ‘Player of the Match’ award for his century. (ANI)
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