The received wisdom for this summer was that the Sri Lankans – and possibly the Indians later on – would be neutered by “English” conditions, in which the ball nibbles around deviously in a manner unfamiliar to those raised in Colombo or Chennai. Well, Chester-le-Street can always be relied on to deliver those conditions and ... what happened? The Sri Lankans thrashed a hapless English side by 157 runs.
Set a target of 257, England capitulated for 99. Only the stand-in captain, Eoin Morgan, who took over because Alastair Cook has a minor strain in his groin, could produce an innings of any substance. The early damage was done by Nuwan Kulasekara, who took three for one in 11 deliveries in his opening spell. Now Kulasekara might be described as an English-style bowler; most counties have someone like him. He bowls with a little bit of swing and a little bit of seam and he knows where the ball is going to land.
He is clever but he is not mysterious, despite the manner in which Michael Carberry, Ian Bell and Gary Ballance were defeated by him on a cloudy afternoon in front of a crowd which just about filled two-thirds of the stadium. This was not English cricket’s finest hour in conditions that Morgan and co would have ordered beforehand. It was chilly. Tillakaratne Dilshan was wearing a beanie under his cap, while his hand-warmers doubled as ear-warmers during the brief interlude that Sri Lanka were in the field.
If the innocent-looking Kulasekara tormented the upper order, those below were dispatched by the off-spinner, Sachithra Senanayake, who finished with a career-best four for 13. Senanayake has a dodgy-looking action but one which has been studied by the authorities and deemed acceptable. Anyone complaining after this annihilation would be hiding from the truth. To be fair, the England players have not. Morgan has played in the same IPL team as Senanayake but he is unfamiliar to the rest. “He is a good bowler with very good skills,” said Morgan. “He does have an unusual action and – a bit like Malinga – it takes some getting used to.”
But the problem was not really Senanayake; the damage had been done when he set to work. Here was a dire, rudderless batting performance, which handed Sri Lanka the simplest of victories before 10 overs had been bowled. There was a catalogue of ugly dismissals from Bell’s nibble against Kulasekara to James Tredwell holing out to long-off against Senanayake with the score 73 for seven and Morgan still at the crease.
Few, if any, of England’s batsmen were victims of unplayable deliveries. Carberry was recalled in Cook’s absence and prodded tentatively while edging to the keeper. Ballance was palpably lbw to a full-length ball and within seven overs England were 29 for four.
Neither Ravi Bopara nor Jos Buttler could grab an opportunity to make a name for himself as Senanayake’s carom ball bewildered, though Buttler was caught by him off Angelo Mathews. England failed to reach three figures, with Morgan delivering the only convincing shots. At home England have never lost by so many runs.
Their out-cricket was far from flawless. There were 15 wides in the Sri Lanka innings and two straightforward boundary catches were dropped, by Harry Gurney and Bopara. Yet despite a fine, measured innings by Dilshan, England kept Sri Lanka in check through most of their 50 overs. The target seemed well within reach and that, according to Morgan, was what England thought to be the case on a relatively innocuous surface.
Apart from a sudden clubbed six off Gurney, Lahiru Thirimanne was becalmed until he edged a delivery from Jimmy Anderson to second slip. It may be that Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara read the pitch and the situation perfectly. They were not too greedy; they took their time. Even Dilshan, a natural aggressor, reined himself in while making a critical 88 from 101 balls. He permitted himself a solitary scoop, preferring orthodox straight drives and clips off the hip. The old Durham pro, Sangakkara, bided his time as well. In fact he barely timed a ball but as the match progressed his 40 looked ever more valuable.
For the second time in three innings Mahela Jayawardene ran himself out; the felicitous stroke-play still remains but he may have lost a yard in pace. An inelegant dive might have helped. Down the order Mathews and Ashan Priyanjan, aided by England’s fallibility in the field, provided acceleration which, as it turned out, was not really needed.
So the series is squared but a performance like this is bound to dent the confidence of the batsmen. England head off to Old Trafford after which the squad for the remaining two matches will be confirmed. A defeat like this is bound to trigger selectorial headaches, whether Cook is fit or not.
There is the temptation to be fair to those who have succumbed so tamely. However, fairness is not the first criterion for selectors. The pursuit of the best team should mean that the places of Carberry and Tredwell in particular should be under close scrutiny soon.
