England complete series clean sweep

England's cricket team poses for a photograph with the trophy after they won the match against Sri Lanka – Reuters

Sri Lanka’s Malinda Pushpakumara falls after a ball hit his helmet delivered by England’s Stuart Broad -  REUTERS

Kusal Mendis (left) plays a shot next to England's wicketkeeper Ben Foakes – Reuters

By Madushka Balasuriya

Just as it was in Pallekele a week earlier, yet another Sri Lankan attempt at a record fourth innings chase flattered to deceive, as England came away eventual winners by 42 runs and with it, secured a 3-0 series whitewash – their first ever in Asia.

Doing the damage as ever were England’s array of spinners; in a series that has seen 100 wickets fall to spin – a record for a three-match series – it was unsurprising that eight Sri Lankan scalps were shared evenly between Moeen Ali and Jack Leach in the innings.

Leach also staked claim to the game’s defining moment – though not how you would expect; rushing in from the backward square leg fence, he collected the ball which had been glanced his way by Roshen Silva, took aim, and fired at the non-strikers end, where Kusal Mendis could only watch in dismay as the middle stump was uprooted with a direct hit.

That piece of brilliance in the field, like so many others throughout this series, would give England the edge they needed to pull ahead of a Sri Lanka outfit showcasing some admirable resilience up until then. 

At that point, Silva and Mendis had the look of men who had weathered the storm, and whose last vestiges of despair were being replaced by something hitherto unthought-of – hope. 

The pair had been brought together in the 10th over of the day after night-watchman Lakshan Sandakan had nicked an absolute ripper from Leach to a waiting Ben Stokes at slip; with Sri Lanka on 82/5 and still some 245 runs away from an unlikely victory, the pair set about rebuilding.For Mendis, this innings held as much significance personally as it did in the context of the match. Up until then, he had not passed the 50-mark in 11 attempts, and he had failed to score more than 30 on 10 of those occasions. One more failure, especially with a newly-announced selection committee in tow, and his place in Sri Lanka’s upcoming touring squad to New Zealand would have surely been in jeopardy.

But, like all the best players, when it mattered most Mendis stood tall; using the crease with an assured maturity, he survived the early threat of Leach and Adil Rashid, before beginning to dutifully punish their loose deliveries. In his 129-ball 86, he notched up eight boundaries and a six, but rarely did he look in danger of throwing his wicket away – always technically sound, never ruffled.

Meanwhile, Silva, at the other end, made an art form of playing inside the line; time and again he was beaten on the outside edge but, on a pitch that had a ball spitting from the rough on a near over-by-over basis, this was to be expected. The better player of spin between the two, his confidence in his ability to withstand the demons in the pitch seemed to imbue Mendis to do the same, and vice versa. In the end the pair put on 102 for the sixth wicket – tellingly, Sri Lanka’s only century stand in the entire series – before Leach’s moment of inspiration brought an end to their vigil.

Niroshan Dickwella then joined the party, bringing with him his usual repertoire of sweeps and reverses. But despite the proactive nature of his batting, the effervescent Dickwella didn’t look in too much discomfort, even coming down the track to launch Leach for four over his head. But when the slow left-armer pitched one shorter the very next ball, asking questions of Dickwella’s back foot defence, all the Lankan keeper could do was edge the ball to the excellent Keaton Jennings at short leg.

Moeen Ali had Dilruwan Perera also caught by Jennings – a record eight catch of the match for the England opener – a few overs later, and when Ali successfully reviewed an LBW shout against Silva in his next over, it was all but over.

And despite a gung-ho 40-ball 42 from Malinda Pushpakumara (an innings that included six – mostly fortuitous – boundaries and a six) giving some of the more optimistic Sri Lankan fans something to dream about, his 58-run last wicket stand with Captain Suranga Lakmal only lasted four balls past the tea break. Leach, fittingly, trapped Lakmal in front of the stumps as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 284. Sri Lanka had a review in the bank, which Lakmal used in vain, but he’ll know his side has a lot more to unpack and evaluate in the days ahead.