Rathnayake helps Sri Lanka recover against England

After being subjected to biting early season conditions on their ­previous five Test tours of England, Sri Lanka could have been forgiven for ­believing that the UK in August might be a time of sunshine and warmth. Manchester had other ideas, however, with the opening day at Old Trafford featuring leaden skies, chill winds and spectators wrapped up in duvets on the balconies of the ground’s two adjoining hotels.

The tourists had also hoped for more than the one warm-up match they ended up with and when they stumbled to six for three inside the first half an hour and then 92 for six shortly after lunch, Ollie Pope’s first day as England’s stand-in captain looked a doozy. Bar losing a toss – and even then wanting to bowl first had he won it – nearly every move went Pope’s way, even if this was aided slightly by a couple of poor shots from Sri Lanka’s top order and the odd bit of capricious bounce from the surface.

Chris Woakes bowls on day one of the Test between England and Sri Lanka at Old Trafford
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By stumps, however, Sri Lanka had pushed back in characterful fashion, suggesting they were perhaps just a couple of hours undercooked at the start. Dhananjaya de Silva delivered a captain’s knock, crafting 74 to douse those early flames, while a more unlikely saviour first supported his cause and then took on the baton. Milan Rathnayake was the name and precious runs from No 9 was his game.

Striding out on his debut at 113 for seven, Rathnayake compiled 72 from 135 balls in a manner that suggested his position was a fraudulent one, the left-hander surviving a short-ball barrage and taking the attack to the hosts. It allowed Sri Lanka to make 236 all out from 74 overs; a sub-par total, certainly, but not nearly the match-losing effort that seemed likely after Chris Woakes claimed a double-wicket maiden with the new ball.

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