Moeen leads the assault as England intensity pays off
Sri Lanka wilt to 203 all out after being stifled Foakes reaches century and shines with gloves
In allowing England to recover from a most incompetent display of batting on the opening morning of this three-test series – Joe Root’s team had self-destructed to 103 for five – something rotten has been revealed in the state of Sri Lankan cricket.
England recovered admirably, in the form of Ben Foakes, who made a piece of history with his century on debut, and they are converging on a rare victory overseas, but Sri Lanka’s laxity assisted them.
Two former Sri Lankan Test players of note have been charged in the past fortnight by the International Cricket Council Anti-corruption Unit, which in the past has caught tiddlers. The charging of the 1996 World Cup winner Sanath Jayasuriya and the bowling coach Nuwan Zoysa could be seen as the tip of an iceberg.
On the field, decay has been visible in Sri Lanka’s slackness in running between wickets and some poor, uncommitted fielding. When batsmen cannot be bothered to run enthusiastically after hitting the ball, no matter the temperature, something is wrong.
England’s new generation, meanwhile, have been as bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as anyone could be in intense heat, although the players have had the blessing of a breeze off the Indian Ocean which passes between Galle Fort and the stands and over the field. No such relief for their 6,000 fans in the ground and on the ramparts, but England’s victories abroad come at a price.
Root captained superlatively well, not only in contrast to the illjudged tempo of his batting but by comparison to his Sri Lankan counterpart Dinesh Chandimal, who allowed Foakes to engineer England’s recovery by pushing mid-on back and giving him a single for little more than forward defensives.
Foakes converted his overnight 87 into a century on debut, 107 off 202 balls. When was a Test century last made for England with such a straight bat? Jack Leach hung around until Foakes was 95, then a couple of fours made the debutant the first England wicketkeeper to score a Test century in Asia.
Foakes followed up with a catch off the second ball he had to face as a keeper – and a stumping, and a second catch. He was not necessarily more effective than Jonny Bairstow as a keeper, but he was more rounded, more polished, and thereby set the tone for England’s excellence in the field. Root gave his opening bowlers short bursts, and James Anderson and Sam Curran responded with a wicket apiece. England’s three spinners took the next eight, and were backed by their fielders, not least Rory Burns, who took a blow to the base of his neck, before recovering enough to bat out the day with Keaton Jennings most sensibly and extend England’s lead to 177.
For England, the influence of Paul Collingwood, here as a coaching consultant, could be detected as everybody had a couple of fielding positions and stuck to them.
Anderson had Dimuth Karunaratne feeling for his second ball, which bounced and swung away from him. Curran took the new ball at the other end, and made sure Stuart Broad was not missed by pinning Kaushal Silva with the perfect inswinger.
It was now, when Leach came on for the eighth over, that the impact of England’s far superior fielding kicked in. On the first day, England’s batsmen had been able to take many a single by pushing into the covers. Sri Lanka’s batsmen found Jos Buttler cutting them off at extra cover. Leach was thus able to bowl his first 13 overs for 19 runs, while Kusal Mendis fell to a classic left-armer’s dismissal, caught at slip off the outside edge.
Moeen Ali, too, benefited from England’s out-cricket: Dhananjaya de Silva, who had been tied down by bowlers and fielders alike, tried to score by playing two high-risk sweeps at Moeen, and paddled the second into his stumps.
Moeen dismissed Angelo Mathews with a bat-pad catch at short leg, first ball after tea, and added a couple of left-handers as he made the ball grip off the so-dry surface. Adil Rashid needed no such help for his two wickets. Both Moeen’s action and mindset appear stronger than ever overseas.
From 40 for four, Sri Lanka advanced through their fifth-wicket pair of Mathews and Chandimal – slowly. In the fiery heat of the afternoon, England’s fielding wilted, but only a little, and Chandimal’s groin strain limited him to ambling between wickets.
Root was always in control until the last five wickets tumbled after tea, when Buttler was rewarded with two catches at extra cover and the whole England team by a break from the sun. Yes, England attacked the Galle Fort most bravely, and they seized the ramparts, but the defenders left a gate open.