The celebration from the England dressing room, particularly from senior players Ben Stokes and Joe Root, said it all. The century from Ollie Pope meant a lot to him. It meant a whole lot to England. There were doubts about his future, and suggestions were floated to revisit his position as Stokes’ successor after Ollie Pope endured a string of low scores, but the stylish right-hander took it in his stride and silenced the doubters with a record century in the third Test against Sri Lanka at The Oval.
Ollie Pope’s century came off a beautiful square drive. As soon as the ball crossed the in-field, Ollie Pope clutched his fists and let out a cry of joy even as Root, Stokes and his other teammates stood up in the dressing room to celebrate. Filling in as captain for the injured Ben Stokes, Ollie Pope has already led England to a series victory over the Sri Lankans after wins at Old Trafford and Lord’s but arrived at the Oval with question marks over his own form after knocks of 6, 6, 1 and 17.
Ollie Pope made amends with a run-a-ball 103 not out, becoming in the process the first batter in 147 years of Test history to hit each of his first seven centuries against different opponents. Ollie Pope has scored centuries against South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, Ireland, India, West Indies and now Sri Lanka to achieve the unique feat.
Pitch and Toss
“It’s a little bit lighter now than it was, the cloud cover has lifted a bit. There’s going to be a bit of a challenge batting while facing from the Vauxhall end because it’s always a bit dark down there. It’s a really good toss to have won and to have elected to bowl. Sri Lanka have to be careful of hoping for it to move, you need to hit the pitch hard here.
Hit the top of off-stump and bring the slips into play. Need to bowl in that in-between length where the batters can’t quite get forward. Expect England to come out and hit boundaries, they’ll come out and attack” say Stuart Broad and Mark Butcher.
Sri Lankan skipper Dhananjaya De Silva won the toss and chose to field as they fielded 4 seamers in their playing XI . England skipper Ollie Pope batting first made one change bringing in Josh Hull for Matthew Potts
Day 1 : Morning Session : England off to racy start on rain-marred morning
A combination of wayward bowling from Sri Lanka and proactive batting from England has seen the hosts get off the blocks quickly in the morning session of the third Test at The Oval on Friday (September 6). Opting to bowl under overcast conditions with the floodlights switched on, Sri Lanka’s seamers weren’t able to hit the right lengths consistently to create pressure on England’s batters.
Ben Duckett (51* off 48) dominated the strike and run-scoring with his typical brand of attacking strokeplay. Anything remotely short or straight was put away square of the wicket on either side as Sri Lanka’s bowlers struggled for discipline.
The lack of accuracy from the tourists meant that captain Dhananjaya de Silva wasn’t able to employ extremely attacking fields. There were sweepers out on both sides of the wicket and for most part, only two slips and a gully were employed. The only moment of joy for the Lankans came when Lahiru Kumara hit the hard length and generated extra bounce to get rid of Daniel Lawrence. The opener was caught in a tangle shuffling across and neither went for the pull nor could control the shot, thereby lobbing a top-edge straight up towards the cordon.
Stand-in captain Ollie Pope began positively, including a nonchalant pull over backward square leg for six while Duckett continued to look fluent at the crease. The ball didn’t swing much for Sri Lanka’s pacers but as the ball lost the lacquer, there was some shape on offer before rain had the final say in the session with close to an hour still left.
The day began with Sri Lanka trying to make good on Dhananjaya de Silva calling correctly at the toss for the third game running. After perilous twin flashes at Asitha Fernando deliveries outside off stump and a fortuitous inside edge off the same bowler which travelled all the way to the fine leg boundary, Duckett was assertive, a clip off his toes through square leg off Vishwa much more assured.
Lawrence, meanwhile, was yet to score after facing 10 balls in five overs and finally made it off the mark when he turned Kumara to square leg and ran two to ironic cheers from the stands.
Duckett raised the tempo when he dispatched Rathnayake for consecutive fours over extra cover but the contrast continued with Lawrence, who dropped his head and spun on his heel in the direction of the changeroom even before his mess of a pull shot off Kumara had dropped into the hands of Pathum Nissanka at gully. Lawrence’s 5 off 21 balls came after scores of 30, 34, 9 and 7 in the series.
Pope back-cut a short, wide delivery from Rathnayake for four to get going almost immediately and punished a Kumara short ball for six over deep backward square before Duckett struck two fours in three balls off Rathnayake to move to 48 and brought up his fifty by crashing Vishwa through the covers and running three. But it was safe to say it was Pope’s day.
Day 1 : Post Lunch Session : Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope drive England forward
Ben Duckett (86 off 75) and Ollie Pope (84* off 85) produced counterpunching knocks to lead England’s charge during the afternoon session on the first day of the final Test against Sri Lanka at The Oval.
Steady drizzle and bad light delayed the start of the post-lunch session by 90 minutes, but the lengthy break didn’t change the fortunes for Sri Lanka’s bowlers who copped the stick from Duckett and Pope in what was an entertaining stand of 95 that came off just 98 deliveries with the former being the aggressor. The surface did have some life in it for the pacers whenever they hit the right lengths but Sri Lanka’s pacers were too inconsistent to trouble the batters.
Duckett used his proactive method to disrupt the bowlers’ radar and his favorite scoop was once again the headline-grabbing stroke in his innings. Unfortunately for him, it was the shot that also brought about his dismissal – second time in the series that he had fallen to the shot. While Duckett missed out on a deserving ton, his counterattack had given England the impetus on an overcast day under not-so-easy batting conditions.
It was also an innings where Pope looked his most fluent in the series and it didn’t come as a surprise, given that The Oval is his home ground where his batting stats are extraordinary.
England’s stand-in captain looked in control from the outset and his shot-making range grew as the innings progressed even as the in-form Joe Root looked ironically streaky at the crease. The leading run-scorer of the series barely looked settled and fell at the stroke of Tea to a short ball from Lahiru Kumara. It was a moment of extreme joy for Sri Lanka, given the pain Root had given them in the series, but on a sporting surface, England are still poised to make a competitive total. Unless Sri Lanka’s bowlers can find their mojo in the final session.
Earlier, play was halted for nearly three hours. Whether the skies were dark enough or the rain heavy enough to keep players off the field for so long was up for debate but once they returned, Ben Duckett and Pope ensured it was raining runs, the pair sharing a 95-run partnership for the second wicket after Dan Lawrence failed to stake his claim as opener for the longer term with another poor innings in the absence of the injured Zak Crawley.
Duckett produced a commanding knock of 86 from just 79 balls before he fell during the afternoon followed by Joe Root, who managed just 13 off 48 balls. But, after scores of 6, 6, 1 and 17 previously in the series, Pope had things covered.
He and Duckett made up for lost time following the first stoppage, which lasted two hours and 50 minutes spanning the lunch break. Duckett’s wayward ramp off Lahiru Kumara bounced just inside the boundary rope at deep third before disappearing into the crowd rather than clearing fine leg as he apparently intended, but no matter for England. At the other end, Pope looked well set too, thumping Kumara through midwicket with beautiful timing moments later.
Duckett continued to toy with Kumara, nailing his next attempt at a ramp shot over the fine-leg fence and guiding a bouncer over deep third for another maximum in the same over.
He survived an appeal for lbw two balls later on umpire’s call after Kumara struck him high on the back thigh, but the shot that had been so productive for him – and entertaining for the crowd – proved to be his undoing as Duckett tried to scoop a slower delivery from Milan Rathnayake only for wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal to pouch a simple catch.
Pope stepped up, top-edging Kumara over the keeper’s head for six, followed immediately by four through backward point to raise his fifty from 58 balls.
After a relatively quiet period which yielded just four runs in as many overs and coincided with the introduction of Angelo Mathews, Pope broke through again, driving Mathews through the covers for four. He then chanced another boundary between slip and gully with his heart in his mouth for a moment before the gap was pierced. Root was caught at fine leg by Vishwa Fernando to give Kumara his second wicket but England remained in total control.
Day 3 : Afternoon Session : Ollie Pope, Duckett shine on truncated opening day
Ollie Pope’s seventh Test ton and a breezy 79-ball 86 from Ben Duckett led England’s dominance on the first day of the third Test against Sri Lanka at The Oval on Friday (September 6). Only 4.1 overs were bowled after Tea with England rattling off 27 runs that included Pope’s century milestone before bad light forced the umpires to take the players off for one last time in the day.
It was a day that belonged to England’s stand-in captain who returned to form in style with a cracking hundred at his home ground. He also became the first batter in the format to have each of his first seven centuries against different opponents.
Given the conditions on offer, Sri Lanka would rue their insipid bowling effort as there were far too many loose balls on offer. England feasted on anything remotely wayward and Duckett’s onslaught in the first two sessions scarred Sri Lanka’s bowlers.
The left-hander played adventurously in the opening hour and soon settled into his aggressive best with authoritative shots square of the wicket on both sides. As he grew in confidence, out came his signature scoop shot that he played with frequent nonchalance although it was the same stroke that eventually brought about his downfall.
Ollie Pope planted his front foot, fixed his eyes on the ball, puffed out his cheeks and cut to the boundary to raise a century that mattered. Every one matters, of course, but with England all over Sri Lanka on the opening day of this third Test and in a series already won, this was personal.
Ollie Pope’s seventh Test ton, scored against as many different opposition teams in a first for the game, came amid the intense pressure of four previous failures in a series where he is standing in for injured captain Ben Stokes. That role in itself has thrust Ollie Pope under greater scrutiny but Stokes’ knowing nod as he applauded the milestone from the changing-room balcony said it all, appreciating a defiant innings that was right up his street.
Moments later, with Ollie Pope unbeaten on 103 from as many balls, boos rang out followed by slow clapping from a three-quarters-full Kia Oval as the umpires directed the players from the field for bad light for a second time in the day. On this occasion, the decision was final as stumps were called just before 6.30pm with England 221 for 3, Harry Brook the other not-out batter on 8.
Day 2 in picture for England and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka then managed to get the in-form Joe Root cheaply after what was an unusually scratchy innings from England’s no.4. But Pope kept motoring along at rapid pace to keep England’s charge going with a blend of classy and crunchy strokes.
Whenever the pacers hit their straps in terms of lines and lengths, there was life in the pitch to trouble the batters but Sri Lanka were far too inconsistent to be a regular threat on the opening day. Unless the visitors pull up their socks and produce a dramatic fightback early on day two, Pope’s men might get to a total that would be daunting.