Joe Root’s determined unbeaten 62 led England to a five-wicket victory in the first Test against Sri Lanka at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Chasing 205 for victory, England found themselves struggling at 56-2 when Root joined the fray shortly before tea on the fourth day. Partnering with Yorkshire colleague Harry Brook (32), Root forged a patient 49-run stand over 20 overs — a stark contrast to England’s recent 'Bazball' style. The slow outfield, however, made boundaries scarce.
The game was back in the balance when Brook gave a return catch to left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya, leaving England at 119-4 and still needing another 86 runs to win.
Jamie Smith, fresh from his maiden Test century in the first innings, provided valuable support to Root with a quickfire 39 during a stand of 64, guiding England to a 1-0 lead in the three-match series with a final score of 205-5.
Smith’s performance at 24 years old demonstrated his remarkable composure under pressure, somewhat alleviating the impact of regular captain Ben Stokes’s absence due to a series-ending torn hamstring.
Sri Lanka’s ability to stretch the match into the fourth day highlighted their resilience, particularly after their collapse to 6-3 on the opening morning.
They continued to battle in the field on Saturday until Smith broke free with consecutive fours off Jayasuriya and later hit him for six.
When Smith was dismissed by Asitha Fernando, England were poised for victory at 183-5.
Soon after, Root reached fifty and ended the match with his second four from 128 balls, lofting Jayasuriya down the ground.
Stand-in England captain Ollie Pope told the BBC, "We had to work hard for that over the four days but we bowled really well throughout."
"Jamie Smith batted so well and then Joe (Root) put on a clinic for us at the end."
Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva commented: "We knew that England would come hard against us. We had our plans but in the first innings we couldn't execute them."
"Our mistakes were made in the first innings and that cost us the match."
Earlier, Sri Lanka's Kamindu Mendis scored his third century in just four Tests, making 113 in their second innings total of 326, having come in with his side in trouble at 95-4.
Mendis, in partnership with Dinesh Chandimal (79), added 117 runs for the seventh wicket in 30 overs.
England faced a setback before play began on Saturday when express bowler Mark Wood was ruled out with a thigh injury sustained while bowling late on Friday.
Sri Lanka resumed on 204-6, just 82 runs ahead, after Smith’s 111 was the cornerstone of England's first-innings total of 358.
Mendis, who was dropped on 39, was unbeaten on 56 and Chandimal on 20.
Mendis quickly found his rhythm on Saturday, having missed Sri Lanka’s only warm-up match against the second-string England Lions at Worcester last week due to visa issues delaying his entry into the UK.
The 25-year-old left-hander drove fast bowler Gus Atkinson through the covers and pulled him behind square for fours off successive deliveries.
Chandimal completed a 73-ball fifty after resuming his innings following a pain-killing injection, having retired hurt on 10 after being struck on the thumb by Wood.
After England took the new ball, Mendis’s cut off seamer Chris Woakes — his 12th four in 167 balls, which also included a six — brought him to a well-deserved century.
He later struck Atkinson for three fours in the first over after lunch, taking Sri Lanka past 300 and finishing with a superb cover drive.
However, Atkinson had his revenge when a ball that cut away sharply off the pitch took Mendis’s outside edge, with Root holding a low catch at slip.
Despite his dismissal, Mendis’s Test batting average remained an impressive 92.
His exit, though, sparked a collapse, with Sri Lanka losing their last four wickets for just 19 runs.
The second Test at Lord’s begins on Thursday.
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