Everything you need to know as England begin a three-match Test series against Sri Lanka, live on Sky Sports…
When and where are the Tests taking place – and how can I watch?
England play Sri Lanka from August 21 through to September 10, with every match live on Sky Sports and a live rolling blog featuring score updates, video highlights and pundit analysis to run on skysports.com and the Sky Sports app.
- First Test: Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester – August 21-25 (11am start)
- Second Test: Lord’s, London – August 29-September 2 (11am start)
- Third Test: The Kia Oval, London – September 6-10 (11am start
Who is in the England XI for first Test?
England will be without captain Ben Stokes for the series after he suffered a summer-ending hamstring injury playing in The Hundred for Northern Superchargers, so Ollie Pope will lead the side for the first time with Harry Brook as his deputy.
The hosts will also will also be missing opener Zak Crawley due to a fractured finger, with Dan Lawrence, usually a middle-order batter, to open alongside Ben Duckett.
England could have handed uncapped Essex batter Jordan Cox a debut following Stokes’ injury but have instead opted to bolster the bowling attack with Durham seamer Matthew Potts recalled.
Wicketkeeper Jamie Smith will jump up a place to No 6, with Chris Woakes promoted to No 7.
England XI to face Sri Lanka: Dan Lawrence, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook (vice-captain), Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir
Pundits on Pope taking the captaincy
Former England captain Nasser Hussain:
“You’re not going to suddenly have Pope come in and be a bit timid and change the plans. The continuity, the messaging, will be absolutely the same. He won’t change any of that.
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Sky Sports’ Nick Knight discusses what Ollie Pope’s stint as England captain will look like with former England captains Nasser Hussain, Eoin Morgan and Michael Atherton
“I don’t think [captaincy] comes as naturally to him as it does for Stokes. I see him as a bit of a worrier, so he has to bluff a little bit. But he’s been brought up in the school of Stokes and [Test coach Brendon] McCullum, so he will just continue the messaging.”
Former England white-ball captain Eoin Morgan:
“I’d imagine Pope will be encouraged to make big contributions in the final say of the XI but also in whether you should bat and bowl, and to ring changes throughout the course of the five days.
“Stokes is the sort of Test captain that doesn’t let the game settle, for any period. He will make a left-field call here or there. Particularly with young players coming through.
“He’ll stick with them longer than any other captain I’ve watched and instil that trust very few captains have, put them in a lot of losing positions with a consequence of winning.
“Very few captains early on in their career will do that. But I’d imagine Brendon, and others in the changing room, will reiterate what the team is about and help Ollie along.”
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Gus Atkinson impressed on his Test debut against the West Indies at Lord’s earlier this summer
How have the sides been performing?
England enter the series following a 3-0 sweep against West Indies in July, winning the first Test at Lord’s by an innings and 114 runs, the second at Trent Bridge by 241 runs and the third at Edgbaston by 10 wickets.
Fast bowler Gus Atkinson announced himself in international red-ball cricket with 22 wickets across the three games.
Sri Lanka head into the series fresh from a historic one-day international series victory over India, their first over that opposition in the format since 1997.
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Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain have both been impressed by Gus Atkinson’s performances in England’s Test series win over the West Indies
Six players from Sri Lanka’s ODI squad – Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Kamindu Mendis, Jeffrey Vandersay and Asitha Fernando – have been included in the Test squad.
Sri Lanka last beat England in a Test series in 2014, winning a two-match series 1-0. They secured a 100-run victory at Headingley after the first game at Lord’s was drawn.
Sri Lanka have won three of their last four Test series, beating Ireland 2-0 at home in April 2023, winning a one-off match against Afghanistan in February of this year and then triumphing 2-0 in Bangladesh in March.
England’s three-Test series against Sri Lanka gets under way at Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester on Wednesday. Watch live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10am (first ball at 11am).