Key events
61st over: Sri Lanka 259-9 (Kumara 5, Asitha 7) Kumara fences Stone just short of Pope at gully. The umpires went upstairs to check but it clearly bounced in front. I’m not sure Pope even appealed.
England do appeal for caught behind when Kumara smears across the line. Ben Duckett started to run off the field, assuming it was out, but Ollie Pope’s latest review was unsuccessful. It hit Kumara on the shoulder of the body, not the bat..
60th over: Sri Lanka 257-9 (Kumara 4, Asitha 6) Asitha chips Bashir over midwicket for two, continuing this mildly irritating last-wicket partnership. Lunch is an hour away so England will want to get batting asap, especially as the sun has just come out.
“I would like to bring up the slip catch by one Joe Root,” says Mark Slater. “Is there not a England record for catches by outfielders, and does Root not now share it? It was a subject mentioned during the previous Test.”
He’s now on 201 catches, behind only Mahela Jayawardene (205) and Rahul Dravid (210) among outfielders. I think he took the England record a couple of years ago.
59th over: Sri Lanka 254-9 (Kumara 3, Asitha 0) Kumara almost copies Rathnayake’s dismissal when he swishes at fresh air outside off stump, then clunks a pull into the leg side for a single.
Blimey, the No11 Asitha charges down the track to clout Stone back over his head for four. Sri Lanka trail by 71.
58th over: Sri Lanka 249-9 (Kumara 2, Asitha 0) Shoaib Bashir replaces Josh Hull, who bowled an impressive spell of 6-0-27-0 either side of the rain break. Asitha misses a couple of disgusting smears across the line.
57th over: Sri Lanka 248-9 (Kumara 1, Asitha 0) Olly Stone has quietly had an impressive return to Test cricket, and with Mark Wood injured he has a good chance of playing in Pakistan.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 248-9 (Rathnayake c Smith b Stone 7)
Oh yes, this is excellent, merciless bowling from Olly Stone. Rathnayake, a very good lower-order batter, was smashed on the armguard and then the glove by nasty deliveries. That meant he was in no position to drive the sucker ball, fuller and wider, and he nicked it through to Jamie Smith.
56th over: Sri Lanka 248-8 (Rathnayake 7, Kumara 1) Rathnayake tries to uppercut a Hull bouncer that beats him and Jamie Smith behind the stumps. Kumara is beaten by a length delivery later in the over. Hull’s figures belong to an ODI circa 1991: 11-0-53-3.
“For me the perfect example of Moeen’s selflessness was promoting himself to No3 during the last Ashes to protect Harry Brook,” says Mark Hooper. “If you look at the figures it looks like he failed, but for the better of the team. It might be apocryphal but I love the story that he replied to his surprise recall to the England team by texting Stokes back ‘LOL’.”
Yep, spot on. I don’t think he ever explicitly stated it was to protect Brook, but we all know what Moeen’s like. It’s no exaggeration to say that England would have lost, maybe been hammered, had he not moved up to No3. It was great that he had that partnership with Zak Crawley at Old Trafford and especially his spell on the final day at The Oval. I think we’ll remember him as much for his decency as his wonderful elegance.
55th over: Sri Lanka 243-8 (Rathnayake 6, Kumara 1) Stone is brought on to replace Woakes and steal wickets from a 20-year-old’s table. He almost does just that when Kumara fences a good delivery just short of the slips. A maiden.
“I will miss Moeen,” says Matt Emerson. “Like Graham Thorpe he was a selfless player and put the needs of the team before his own. I wish him a peaceful non-playing career. Oh, and it’s raining in Guildford. Expect an early lunch to be taken about 12.30.”
54th over: Sri Lanka 243-8 (Rathnayake 6, Kumara 1) Since Baz and Ben took over in 2022, five England bowlers have taken five-fors on debut: Will Jacks, Rehan Ahmed, Josh Tongue, Tom Hartley and Gus Atkinson. Before that there had been three in the previous 19 years.
Hull should be one wicket away from joining the list – but Olly Stone has just dropped a straightforward chance. The whole thing was weird: a full toss that Kumara spooned miles in the air towards long leg. Stone ran in, tried to catch it with a reverse cup and made a mess of it. There was no need to reverse his hands.
“Sad to hear of Moeen’s retirement,” says Colum Fordham. “His Gower-like cover drives, probing off-spin bowling and excellent fielding made him, as well as his humble demeanour, one of the most endearing and engaging cricketers on the world stage. I feel England may have missed a trick by leaving him out of the T20 team. I think Moeen still had/has much to offer in this format.”
I think it’s the right decision: he’s 37 and there were times in the last year or so when he almost felt like a specialist vice-captain. That sounds harsh, which wasn’t the intention, but he has been fairly peripheral for a while. Time to look at Jacob Bethell in the middle order, maybe Sam Curran too.
53rd over: Sri Lanka 238-8 (Rathnayake 2, Kumara 0) Woakes bowls a few deliveries across Rathnayake, then gets one to swing back sharply to hit him on the glove. A maiden.
“I can’t help but be reminded of another raw bowler, picked as a bit of an unknown, whose action looked in need of coaching, but who possessed the priceless ability to move the ball in the air and off the seam at decent pace,” writes Gary Naylor. “He had a few bumps along the way, but he ironed things out and did okay. Maybe, up on the balcony this afternoon, Jimmy Anderson can tell Josh Hull about him.”
He was sharp at the start, wasn’t he? We tend to forget that.
52nd over: Sri Lanka 238-8 (Rathnayake 2, Kumara 0) Tell you what folks, we might have found one here. For all the talk of pace and height, it’s the swing that really makes him dangerous. Well, that and the height, the left-arm angle and the potential pace.
“I’ve seen quite a bit of Hull over the past couple of years at Leicester and he’s definitely capable of bowling over 85mph,” says Mike Daniels. “That’ll probably come as he relaxes into Test cricket.
“He’s increased his run up this year, he had a shorter one previously. I think they’ve (Leicester) worked on a longer run up to help him get through the crease and maintaining body height to offset a tendency to ‘heave’ the ball at the batter and lose body shape.
“He’s only twenty and nowhere near the finished article but has enormous potential. He’s a nice lad as well.”
You could argue his potential is unprecedented in English cricket. I know we have Reece Topley but he’s never been a serious contender for the Test team because of his injuries.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 238-8 (Vishwa LBW b Hull 0)
A classic left-arm swing bowler’s dismissal. Hull curves a lovely delivery back into Vishwa, who misses a defensive push and is trapped plumb in front. That’s just lovely bowling, and Hull has a sniff of a debut five-for.
51st over: Sri Lanka 237-7 (Rathnayake 1, Vishwa 0) Woakes spears four byes down the leg side – Smith had no chance – then digs in a lovely bouncer that is gloved into the leg side by Vishwa.
“I wish Mo all the best now he’s called it a day for England,” writes Guy Hornsby. “Someone who always seemed to play the game for the right reasons and put the team before himself, even when he was messed around. A beautiful, if mercurial player who seemed to be lauded for his strokeplay and singled out by many when he failed in ways that felt unfair to me. His book was really interesting, and seeing how he navigated the game and succeeded as a Muslim is something I hope inspires many after him. One of the good guys.”
Another thing I always loved about Moeen is his aversion to bee ess. His interviews were always so candid, particularly when he and/or England had played crap.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 233-7 (Kamindu c Root b Woakes 64)
That’ll do! Chris Woakes starts with a really good delivery that Kamindu, pushing defensively, edges to Root at first slip. The line and length were perfect, angled across the left-hander from over the wicket, and Kamindu had to play.
50th over: Sri Lanka 233-6 (Kamindu 64, Rathnayake 1) Kamindu Mendis turns Hull fractionally short of the man at leg slip, then shapes to hook a bouncer before wisely deciding against it. The ball beats everyone and flies away for five wides.
This is a menacing start from Hull. The next delivery swings away to take the edge and fly through the vacant gully region at catchable height. Four runs but a moral victory for Hull against a seriously good player. As Stuart Broad points out, Mendis’s weight was back because of the bouncer which was why he edged the drive.
Lunch has been pushed back to 1.45pm. Josh Hull is about to resume with the ball.
Play will restart at 11.50am
No word of a lie.
“As to nicknames for Josh, simply calling him Rod doesn’t seem surreal enough,” writes Kim Thonger (again). “I’d be calling him Emu because of his height as well.”
Isn’t the unofficial rule of nicknames that there should only be one degree of separation?
“I’m sure the question on everyone’s lips is, is Josh Hull related to Rod Hull of Emu fame?” asks Kim Thonger. “And does he also have a grudge against plain speaking Yorkshire folk?”
I didn’t realise until recently that Rod Hull died because he wanted to watch Man Utd in the Champions League. I knew he was adjusting his aerial but didn’t know it was so that he could watch Henning Berg v Ronaldo. It almost sounds made up. Poor bloke.
Rain stops play
Darn it.
49th over: Sri Lanka 223-6 (Kamindu 59, Rathnayake 1) Gus Atkinson has a tight quad which is why he’s off the field. The fielder is Jordan Cox, the next cab off the battingt rank and a magnificent fielder.
The next batter Rathnayake chases a very wide, very full delivery from Woakes and is beaten. Two left-handers at the crease now, though not for long because it has just started raining. Rathnayake is beaten again by the last ball of the over.
48th over: Sri Lanka 221-6 (Kamindu 58, Rathnayake 1) Hull’s figures are 7-0-36-2; there’s plenty to like.
“The England team seems to be referring to Josh Hull as ‘Hully’,” writes Stephen Cottrell. “Surely they’re missing some great opportunities here. I don’t expect that Ollie Pope is a huge rugby league fan, but what about ‘Kingston’ or ‘KR’. For my generation, anyone with the surname Hull would automatically be ‘Rod’.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 220-6 (Dhananjaya c Bashir b Hull 69)
Well bowled Josh Hull! He has bounced out Sri Lanka’s captain Dhananjaya de Silva, who top-edged a hook high towards Bashir at long leg. He took the catch a little awkwardly, falling to his left, but held on as he hit the ground.
That’s Hull’s second Test wicket but in a way it’ll feel like the first, because it was a proper dismissal. The line was perfect, far enough outside off stump that Dhananjaya couldn’t control his hook shot.
47th over: Sri Lanka 214-5 (Dhananjaya 64, Kamindu 57) Gus Atkinson is off the field, which is probably a factor in Josh Hull opening the bowling. Chris Woakes opens at the other end, taking a few deliveries to find his line before swinging a good delivery back into Kamindu’s midriff. A maiden.
“Mo retiring is bad day for cricket – what a delight he was – but a good day for Wilfred Rhodes,” says Pete Salmon. “Mo never did bat at 10 or 11, so Our Wilf keeps his record.”
For now: Ben Stokes has batted everywhere except No2.
46th over: Sri Lanka 214-5 (Dhananjaya 64, Kamindu 57) England open the bowling with Josh Hull, which depending on your perspective is either a) a clever way of boosting his confidence or b) two stiff fingers in the direction of Mother Cricket. He starts well, getting some nice some outswing to the left-hander Kamindu, who thick edges a good delivery wide of the cordon for a single.
“Astonishing that Moeen Ali played 298 times for England: 68 Tests, 138 ODIs and 92 T20s,” says Andrew Goudie. “Ultimate team player.”
It was a unique career, wasn’t it? Yes, yes, I know all careers are unique, strictly speaking. But I can’t think of any that resemble Moeen’s.
Play is about to begin. For how long, we know not, so let’s enjoy it while it lasts.
Who wants the TMS overseas link? What’s it worth?
Oh go on then.
Today’s schedule
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Morning 11am-1.15pm
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Afternoon 1.55-4.10pm
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Evening 4.30-6.30pm
On-the-nose musical interlude
Barney Ronay on Josh Hull
You could – and some will – call Hull’s selection the most damning statement of thanks-but-no-thanks ever directed at county cricket. Picking him is literally saying, there is nothing to be gained from succeeding in this. We will instead pick a 20-year-old with 16 wickets at 62 because we like how he looks. How are you meant to feel about this if you’re a 27-year-old with hard-earned county numbers, winning games every week, running through the pain, dreaming of a bigger stage?
There were more issues with the light yesterday, including a weird few minutes in which Chris Woakes was obliged to bowl four balls of offspin. Here’s what Olly Stone made of it all.
“Imran Khan played 48 of his 88 Tests at No7 and averaged 35,” writes Gary Naylor. “He’d be in the conversation. Shaun Pollock played half his 108 Tests from number 8 and averaged 31 there!”
Imran is in almost every conversation about great cricketers, isn’t he? I do think he played his best cricket at No6, though he was still a giant.
“Hi Rob,” writes Marcus Abdullahi. “Batters to average over 40 batting at 7 (min 20 Tests) from highest average to lowest: de Kock, Gilchrist, Greg Matthews, Litton Das, Chris Cairns, Wasim Raja, Alan Knott, Matt Prior and IT Botham.”
That’s a good list. Litton Das has played some extraordinary innings in that position.
And now it’s over to Andrew Miller for the weather
I think we’ll start on time, but there’s a yellow weather warning from 2pm, so there’s that.
International cricket lost a bit of charm overnight when Moeen Ali announced his retirement from all forms. His England career is hard to summarise, isn’t it? He could exhilarate and frustrate in equal measure; he was England’s most elegant left-hander since David Gower; he was too unselfish for his own good; and he was – for richer and poorer – a beacon of humanity. Moeen has an endearing honesty and self-awareness, as shown by his own assessment of his career.
I hope people remember me as a free spirit. I played some nice shots and some bad shots, but hopefully people enjoyed watching me.
He wasn’t a great player, but he leaves cricket in a better place than he found it. And the extent of his influence on British-Asian cricketers may not become apparent for another 10 or 15 years.
Ali Martin’s day two report
The lower order clearly had licence to thrash and Sri Lanka, re-energised after that tricky first day, were getting the old ball to swing. But among the array of swipes that accelerated things was a curious innings from Harry Brook. So often appearing already set when he arrives at the crease, Brook was instead jumpy here, surviving one howling drop in the deep by Asitha Fernando on 12 before crashing a wide ball to short cover.
Preamble
Shall we try that one again? England were very poor yesterday, but they are still in a reasonable position to complete a clean sweep. Sri Lanka will resume on 211 for 5, a deficit of 114, with Dhananjaya de Silva on 64 and Kamindu Mendis on 54.
Let’s talk about Kamindu. Apart from Adam Gilchrist, has there been a better regular No7 in Test cricket? By that I mean the quality of the player when they were a regular No7. You can make a case for Ian Botham in the late seventies and early eighties and also Quinton de Kock, but Kamindu is in the conversation. And while Gilchrist is the best, Kamindu is probably the most classical No7 we’ve seen.
While he is at the crease, assumptions of an England victory – and they are widespread, even among those who were most criticial of England’s confused, slightly indulgent performance yesterday – look dangerous.