England lost the final Test match of their summer to leave the scoreline against Sri Lanka 2-1, having already secured a series-win with victories in both of the first two Tests. Here are the player ratings for England from the series.
Ben Duckett - 5
3 matches, 186 runs at 31.00, HS: 86
Duckett made a positive impact at both Lord's and The Oval, scoring 47-ball 40 on Day One north of the Thames before a 79-ball 86 a week later. However, there was a century for the taking at The Oval, and his lack of capitalisation on that means he finishes a summer where he could have filled his boots without a three-figure score.
Dan Lawrence - 2
3 matches, 120 runs at 20.00, HS: 35
Lawrence was in a difficult position. Having finally got his opportunity after trailing around as the de-facto spare bat over the last year, it was in a position he had no experience in. Rather than his free-flowing best-self, he looked trapped and out of his depth. Trying to hit his way out of the rut in his final innings of the series resulted in an ugly dismissal, caught nicking off advancing down the pitch, and the third England wicket to fall in the first 12 overs.
Ollie Pope - 5
3 matches, 245 runs at 31.83, HS: 154
In his first proper outing as a captain, the pressure mounted on Pope as his lean run continued. There was also criticism of the decision to come off rather than bowl spin at Lord's. A century on home turf at The Oval helped ease any concerns, but he wasn't able to guide England to a whitewash.
Joe Root - 8.5
3 matches, 375 runs at 75.00, HS: 143
Twin centuries at Lord's and anchoring the chase at Old Trafford, as so often is the case England have Root to thanks as a major part of why they won this series. Having surpassed Alastair Cook's record as England's leading Test centurion, he now has him firmly in his sights for the No.5 spot on the all-time Test run-scoring charts.
Harry Brook - 4
3 matches, 180 runs at 30.00, HS: 56
A low-key series for Brook, with just the one score of 50 or more. He was criticised for his approach in the first innings at The Oval, having been on eight overnight with England 221-3 and in a position from which they could have established dominance. He was given out off his third ball of the day having played a careless drive to Lahiru Kumara and, having successfully reviewed that decision, he was out to another flashy drive that was caught by Kamindu Mendis at short cover.
Jamie Smith - 7
3 matches, 280 runs at 46.66, HS: 111
Smith scored his maiden Test century at Old Trafford, having threatened all series against the West Indies. He also stood out among England's batters during the second innings at The Oval, managing 67 before he was caught at short midwicket.
Chris Woakes - 7
3 matches, 13 wickets at 19.30, BBI: 3-32
46 runs at 9.20, HS: 25
Woakes showed raw pace wasn't the be all and end all for England after Mark Wood was injured out of the series. He was England's leading wicket-taker, and he was by far the most economical pacer across both teams, while his off-spin could do with some work. He did not, however, make an impact from his new batting position at No.7, with a high score of 25 from six innings.
Gus Atkinson - 8
3 matches, 12 wickets at 27.42, BBI: 5-62
158 runs at 31.83, HS: 118
Atkinson's second Lord's Test brought him accolades galore, with a third five-for at the ground in his debut summer and a maiden Test century. By innings, he's the fastest player ever to get his name on all of the Lord's honours boards and usurped Woakes's role as master of the ground. He was quieter at The Oval as the summer's toil caught up with him, but as one of only two England seamers to play all three Tests and take 10 wickets in the series, his impact was pivotal.
Shoaib Bashir - 4
3 matches, 6 wickets at 49.33, BBI: 3-55
A quiet series for Bashir after his five-for at Trent Bridge against the West Indies. Old Trafford was the only surface which offered him assistance, but he bowled with reasonable control throughout the series.
Olly Stone - 5
2 matches, 7 wickets at 29.42, BBI: 3-35
Coming back into the Test match side after more than three years out, Stone met the mark without being spectacular. His speeds were down on the kind of pace bowler he's billed to be, mitigated slightly by tired surfaces that weren't particularly receptive to raw pace. His best outing of the series came in the first innings at The Oval, where he contributed a run out alongside three wickets with his bowling.
Matthew Potts - 5
2 matches, 5 wickets at 29.60, BBI: 3-47
After a wayward start in Manchester, Potts bounced back to somewhere close to his best at Lord's with the highlight taking two wickets in an over. He was left out for Josh Hull at The Oval.
Mark Wood - 4
1 match, 2 wickets at 33.50, BBI:1-31
Just the one match of the series for Wood before scans to his elbow revealed a year-ending injury. It's a blow for England who would have hoped for his 97mph services in Pakistan.
Josh Hull - 4
1 match, 3 wickets at 30.33, BBI: 3-53
On his first day in the field, Hull dropped an easy catch that would've made his heart sink on debut in front of a sell-out Oval crowd, and was also fairly wayward in his opening spell. A spectacular Woakes catch handed him Pathum Nissanka as the first of three wickets in his first outing as a Test cricketer, and he improved on the third morning, in particular with an excellent ball to dismiss Dhananjaya de Silva. Not a lot was expected from Hull, handed a debut so early into his professional career, and the evidence is that there is much to work on as well as work with.
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