England Men v Sri Lanka - 3 Test Match Series Aug/Sept 2024

'Don't take the mickey' - Michael Vaughan warns England..by Stephan Shemilt, Chief Cricket Writer at The Kia Oval

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Former captain Michael Vaughan has warned England not to "take the mickey out of the game" after a sloppy second day allowed Sri Lanka back into the final Test at The Kia Oval.

England lost their last seven wickets in a blur of aggressive shots to be bowled out for 325, then some ultra-attacking fields gave the tourists the opportunity for a swift start to their reply.

Sri Lanka reached 211-5, 114 runs behind, when bad light again brought an early end to play.

"It just felt like the end of term," Vaughan told the Test Match Special podcast. "With the bat in hand they were very expansive. Would they bat like that against India and Australia? They wouldn't.

"They came out and set the field with lots of slips and didn't have a fine leg. It was like when you played school cricket and played a school you knew you were better than."

England are looking for a second successive 3-0 series win and a first 100% home summer since Vaughan's team won all seven Tests in 2004.

Led by captain Ollie Pope's century, England did well to reach 221-3 on the opening day of the third Test, then wasted the opportunity to post a huge first-innings total on the second morning.

Pope moved to 154, but apart from opener Ben Duckett's 86 on Friday, no other batter made 20. Overall, England lost 7-64 in just 100 deliveries.

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"England haven't had many bad days this summer. I still expect them to get over the line," added Vaughan, who captained England in 51 of his 82 Tests.

"England delight me a lot in the way they play. I like that they do things completely differently. But I sometimes watch and think 'be careful because this game has a way of biting you'.

"Don't think you can do things no other player has done in the history of the game - dance down the wicket and whack an away-swinger over mid-off.

"Don't take the mickey out of the game. Be very, very careful. There are cricketing gods up there and in a year's time there are tougher challenges.

"I would ask England 'were you on it all day like you would be against India and Australia?' If they look themselves in the mirror and say they were, I would say they are lying. They weren't on it today."

Harry Brook's approach for his 19 was symptomatic of England's wasteful morning.

Brook was dropped on 12, then appeared to mock Sri Lanka's plan of bowling wide of off stump before he drilled a catch to cover.

And ex-England captain Sir Alastair Cook said Brook was an example of the hosts' "complacent" approach.

"Sri Lanka bowled in the channel outside off stump and he didn't like it," said Cook, the last England captain to win an Ashes series.

"He was moaning to the umpire in jest that it was a bit boring and pretended to bat on sixth stump. An over later he slapped one straight to cover.

"Rather than finding a method, he was more about trying to talk about it than deal with the situation.

"There was an element of carelessness from England today. They could have been so far ahead there was no way Sri Lanka could have come back. I still think they will win this Test, but they have given Sri Lanka a sniff."

Olly Stone took two wickets and ran out Sri Lanka opener Dimuth Karunaratne with a direct hit.

The fast bowler denied complacency played a part in England's performance.

"We've always said about taking the positive option," said Stone. "On another day it goes another way and we get a few more runs on the board.

"The way the pitch was, we felt that was quite a lot on there. It nipped around and they have played well and got a decent score."

Agree with MV above, England have chucked this test away after treating it as a one day game by batting poorly in the 1st inns...

Sri Lanka rallied with a good reply, but England collapsed with only 2 batters getting any notable runs, handing SL a chance of victory..

I know we have won the series, but what about the fans that have been let down by a poor display by England.

At 6.25pm and all day monday and tuesday, Sri Lanka require 144 more runs to win with 9 wickets remaining.

'One hell of a Test to win' but England 'believe'..Paul Collingwood

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England have the "belief" they can beat Sri Lanka, but Paul Collingwood admitted it will be "one hell of a Test match to win" from the position the hosts are in.

Sri Lanka closed day three of the final Test on 94-1, needing 125 more runs to reach their target of 219 and earn a famous win.

At 2-0 up, England have already secured the series, yet have been below their best at The Oval. On Sunday, they were bowled out for 156 in their second innings in 34 overs, their shortest Test innings for more than three years.

"This team is capable of doing some special things," said assistant coach Collingwood. "We have to have that belief we can turn things around.

"Hopefully we can get on a roll. It's an exciting opportunity."

England are on a run of five successive Test wins and are looking for their first 100% home summer in 20 years.

However, they have been wasteful on numerous occasions at The Oval. From 261-3 in their first innings, the home side were bowled out for 325.

At the beginning on the third day, England were able to take the last five Sri Lanka wickets for 52 runs to earn a first-innings lead of 62.

Instead of batting the tourists out of the game, England found themselves 82-7 and needed a blistering 67 from wicketkeeper Jamie Smith to set a competitive target. Still, Sri Lanka made a rapid start to the chase and will start the fourth day as favourites.

"We're going to need a special day if we’re going to win this match," added former England all-rounder Collingwood. "There will be belief in the dressing room. It will be one hell of a Test match to win from this position.

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"We always look at the opportunity, rather than the failures. When you have that optimism, it's amazing what can translate on to the cricket field. We have been in some deep holes at times but have found ways of getting out of them because of the talent in the dressing room."

England’s success this summer has come after they pledged to "refine" the Bazball style adopted when coach Brendon McCullum took charge.

But some of their batting and field placings at The Oval has attracted criticism. England’s all-time leading run-scorer Alastair Cook said his former team have been complacent, while ex-England skipper Michael Vaughan warned them not to "take the mickey out of Test cricket".

Collingwood, who played 68 Tests for England, is a former team-mate of both Cook and Vaughan.

"I haven't seen any of the criticism, but we all know it will be out there," he said. "If you don't perform, you will get criticised. That’s fine.

"We're not always going to get it right and today was one of those days we didn't get it right. The guys is the dressing room will hold their hands up.

"We want to make sure we can have a clean sweep and the lads are very proud about playing for England. We've not felt there has been an complacency coming into this match."

That England still have a chance is mainly down to 24-year-old Smith, who thrilled his home crowd with some stunning shots. At one point, the Surrey man took 52 runs from 18 deliveries.

And Collingwood compared the wicketkeeper to Adam Gilchrist, the legendary Australian with the ability to destroy attacks from number seven. Collingwood was part of the England side that was hammered by Gilchrist's 57-ball century in Perth in 2006, the fastest ever in an Ashes Test.

"It's exciting when he comes in," said Collingwood of Smith. "He's certainly an entertainer.

"You go back to the days of when Gilchrist would come in for Australia. It sucks the life out of you as the opposition when someone has the ability to do something like that. In his short Test career, he has shown some great skills."