Smiling assassin Anderson stars on England return
Sri Lanka batsmen kept in check by ‘knackered’ bowlers Centurion Mathews stages revival after early wickets fall
Mark Wood could barely summon the energy to celebrate his first wicket of the series. After almost 39 overs slogging in searing heat across two Tests, he slumped, hands on knees, when Dinesh Chandimal was given out lbw.
“I joked with bowling coach Jon Lewis I might be here until 2054 bowling from that Fort End and have none for 3,000, so it is nice to at least have a one-fer. It might just be one for 3,000 now,” he said.
It was a moment of joy in a marathon third spell of eight overs (one for 15). “My head got redder and redder on the screen, so that tells you how knackered I was,” he added.
Knackered but proud. Wood’s final ball of his Herculean third spell was 91mph, testament to his fitness and willingness to put everything on the line when bowling for England.
With barely any swing, no turn for the spinners and only the merest hint of reverse, England opted for patience, bowling dot balls in the hope Sri Lanka would repeat their first Test implosion. It did not happen even after slumping to seven for two.
Monday’s defeat led to national hand-wringing and much introspection about the state of Sri Lankan cricket and Angelo Mathews restored some pride with his third Test century against England, but somehow, given how flat it usually is, his first in Galle.
At 229 for four, Wood and James Anderson had kept England in touch. But they will have to bat well to stay in this game. The pitch will turn more from late on the second day, when England are likely to start their innings. This series is not over.
As preparation for India and Australia, this was perfect. With no lateral movement, and batsmen ready to stay in for long periods, England had to flog themselves for wickets when normally they bowl in home conditions safe in the knowledge another edge or play-and-miss is never far away.
Seam bowling is England’s strength, even in Asia, and Anderson returned to Test cricket after a five-month break and dropped immediately on to the right line and length. He bowled 19 overs of unrelenting accuracy for his three for 24 in arguably his best performance in Sri Lanka on his fifth tour to the country, and at the age of 38.
Anderson drew on his experience and played on the patience of batsmen, while Wood tested their tickers. He rapped them on the gloves, aimed balls into the ribs and found a touch of reverse when he bowled full with the older ball. He struck Chandimal on the peak of the helmet and batsmen were tentative getting forward, making the fuller ball, with which Wood took his wicket, more dangerous.
He has struggled in the past to play back-to-back Tests, but with a break after this match he could give his all. His pace never dipped from the high eighties, peaking at 94mph, and his third spell was the longest, by far, of any bowled by an England seamer in this series, and the longest for Wood since his maiden Test. The drier weather created better conditions for reverse swing, the only chink of encouragement.
For England’s ambitious rotation plan to work this winter, they need the players to look at how Anderson and Stuart Broad have seamlessly swapped jobs in this series.
Where Broad left off last week, Anderson carried on, taking two wickets with the new ball and striking with his second delivery of the afternoon. He will admit there was a hint of luck and perhaps his reputation earned him the dismissals of both openers.
Kusal Perera threw everything at an away swinger, aiming an ugly slog over long-on, but edged to Joe Root at slip. Either side of lunch, Lahiru Thirimanne was worked over by a familiar Anderson recipe of in- and outswingers. Thirimanne, failing to switch on after the interval, fended timidly at a regulation outswinger to edge behind for 43.
Anderson had earlier followed the wicket of Perera by bowling Oshada Fernando off an inside edge for a fourth-ball duck. Anderson’s first spell was remarkable, taking two for four from five overs. It took 55 balls to concede a boundary, and after 15 overs he had three for 16, with 103 dot balls across the day.
Anderson averaged 46 in Sri Lanka before this innings and took one for 105 on the last tour. But this pitch was redolent of those in the United Arab Emirates, where Anderson has a fine record (average of 20), and he knew what to do.
Mathews was the picture of patience, treating Anderson and Wood with respect, and waited for his chances off the spinners. He dumped Dom Bess down the ground for his first boundary, and soon worked Jack Leach through midwicket for another four. Bess was more in control of his length, but Leach leaked runs before lunch, although he did gradually improve.
Chandimal and Mathews dug in for 117 runs for the fourth wicket, taking the blows from Wood, who never let Sri Lanka take control in the period leading up to the second new ball. Chandimal was eventually beaten by a ball that nipped in late, hitting his pad so hard that he turned away limping before the umpire gave him out.
The review turned up three red lights, four if you count Wood’s cheeks.