Olly Stone impresses as England take five Sri Lanka wickets before tea
England had earlier collapsed from 221 for three overnight to 325 all out in the space of just two hours.
Olly Stone led the charge for England as 12 wickets tumbled in two chaotic sessions on day two of the third Test against Sri Lanka.
The game advanced at pace at the Kia Oval, with a careless batting performance from England taking them from 221 for three overnight to 325 all out in the space of just two hours.
Sri Lanka’s own weaknesses were then exposed as they responded with 142 for five in the afternoon, Stone kickstarting things with a run out before striking twice with the ball.
There was also a maiden wicket for 20-year-old rookie Josh Hull, with the 6ft 7in left-armer removing the settled Pathum Nissanka thanks to an excellent catch from Chris Woakes.
Stone was responsible for taking out three of the tourists’ most experienced heads, removing Dimuth Karunaratne with a direct hit, having Angelo Mathews caught at gully then pinning Dinesh Chandimal lbw for duck.
That papered over the cracks of a disappointing effort with the bat, with a promising innings subsiding as the last six wickets tumbled for just 35. Captain Ollie Pope resumed on 103 not out, silencing doubts over his ability to lead the side and perform at number three, was the eighth wicket to fall for 154.
He topped up his existing century with 51 runs at almost a run-a-ball but never quite settled. Three edges sailed through gaps in the slip cordon, one lbw shout came dangerously close and an inside edge that seemed destined for leg stump somehow missed. When he finally smashed a pull to deep square, he could hardly complain.
The lower-middle order evaporated amid a series of soft dismissals, Jamie Smith flicking Vishwa Fernando to midwicket and Woakes lasting just four balls as he lobbed a catch off Dhananjaya de Silva.
The tail was knocked over with minimal fuss, Gus Atkinson, Hull and Shoaib Bashir clubbing together for eight runs in 25 balls between them, the latter pair competing for the rankest mis-hit of the day.
After a solitary over from Woakes before lunch, the real work began after the interval as Sri Lanka’s openers put on 34 in a steady start. It only took one lapse to undo their work, a poor call inviting Stone to throw down the stumps and send Karunaratne on his way.
Woakes was bizarrely instructed to bowl off-spin for the next four balls, the umpires deciding that the light was too dim to bowl pace before reversing their decision at the end of the over.
Woakes, whose tweakers left a lot to be desired, was happy to get back to his long run and soon had Kusal Mendis fending to slip. Stone made further inroads, finding Mathews’ edge outside off stump then pinning Chandimal on the back leg but the biggest cheer was reserved for Hull.
A raw youngster with just 10 first-class appearances to his name, he started nervily but struck midway through his third over as Woakes threw himself at a tough chance to account for the lively Nissanka (64).
