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Ollie Pope returned to form at his home ground of the Oval by scoring his first century as England captain on the first day of the third Test against Sri Lanka on Friday. Pope had managed just 30 runs in the previous four innings since replacing the injured Pope. ben stokes Pope was the captain at the start of the series. But when bad light ended the day’s play, Pope was unbeaten on 103 while England were down to 221/3. Sri Lanka, who are already 2-0 down in the three-match series, failed to make full use of the overcast conditions and green pitch as the captain said he would play for his team. Dhananjay De Silva Won the toss. And England should have had two centuries as openers on Friday Ben DuckettThis is not the first time that he has lost his wicket after scoring 86 runs.
The dismissal was a rare bright spot for struggling Sri Lanka Joe Root He was out for 13 shortly before tea.
Root hit two centuries in a 190-run win at Lord’s, where he set a new England record of 34 Test centuries.
England, who whitewashed the West Indies 3-0 earlier this season, are looking for a clean sweep in their first home Test campaign since 2004. michael vaughan Won seven consecutive victories.
Duckett soon got into the rhythm and the left-handed batsman smashed cover drives for fours on four consecutive balls. milan rathnayake Delivery.
It was a different story for the makeshift opener Dan LawrenceA middle order batsman by profession.
Lawrence was forced to face the new ball in the absence of injured players in this series. Jack Crowley,
He had just scored five runs when he got caught by a short pitch ball. Lahiru Kumara The ball was lofted up and was an easy catch in the gully.
Number three batsman Pope made a superb start by cutting a loose delivery from pacer Rathnayake for a four and then followed it up with a six off Lahiru Kumara.
29-year-old Duckett completed his half-century with the help of seven fours in just 48 balls.
Despite the floodlights being on, the umpires decided it was too dangerous to continue and play was halted due to poor light, with England 76-1 from 15 overs. Rain then fell and the match did not resume until 1410 GMT.
In no time, Duckett smashed Kumara for six over fine leg and then a lofted uppercut in the third over, causing all four Sri Lankan pace bowlers to struggle to maintain a challenging line and length.
But Duckett, who was on his way to scoring his fourth century in 26 Tests, was dismissed after playing a superb scoop off Rathnayake into the hands of the wicketkeeper. Dinesh Chandimal,
It was a careless end to a 95-run partnership in 16 overs with Pope.
The 26-year-old Pope was lucky to hit a six off Kumara but the pacer hooked Root to fine leg where Vishwa Fernando took the catch despite slipping on the wet turf.
Pope, a Surrey favourite, was on course for 84 not out at tea, his seventh century in 49 Tests but first at the Oval, when he stylishly lofted a square drive. Asitha Fernando He hit his 13th four off 102 balls which included two sixes.
Soon after, at 1653 GMT, poor light forced the players to leave the field again, making no play possible on Friday.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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