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England skipper Ollie Pope has praised the side for grinding out a successful run-chase against Sri Lanka in the first Test at Manchester. The hosts were set a target of 205 by the Lankans and they completed the task in 57.2 overs with five wickets in hand.
Contrary to their usual slam-bang batting style, England endured several periods without boundaries, a trait that pleased Pope.
Speaking to BCC post-game, Ollie Pope said:
"On another day you might see us try to knock that off in 20 less overs. It shows where we're coming on as a team overall, we're not just a one-dimensional team where we want to go out and score quickly. We want to keep reading situations slightly better and try to be as ruthless as we can. If we feel like that is a way to go, it's not all about trying to score as quickly as we can, it's about getting the job done."
England were led by their talisman Joe Root, who finished unbeaten on 62 from 128 deliveries. They also received valuable contributions from Dan Lawrence, Harry Brook, and Jamie Smith, all chipping in with 30+ scores.
"There were some good lessons learned for me" - Ollie Pope
Olle Pope said he learned plenty in his first stint as England's Captain during the first Test against Sri Lanka. With regular skipper Ben Stokes ruled out with a hamstring injury sustained at The Hundred, Pope will be in charge of the England side for the rest of the three-match series.
"It was different, more so in the field. There were some good lessons learned for me," Pope said in the same interview.
Ollie Pope hailed Ben Stokes, who was with the squad throughout the opening Test and will likely remain for the remaining two Tests.
"I think Stokesy was bored at times. He'd much rather be playing. He was great. Every now and again I'd pick his brain, more than he comes to me. He wanted to give me my own space to do it my own way, but I know there will be conversations with him and [McCullum] while we're on the pitch about potential plans for different batters, which is great to have when we come off for a break," Ollie Pope added.
While his captaincy stint started on a positive note, Pope struggled with the bat, scoring only 12 runs in the two innings of the first Test.
He will look to be back among the runs in the second Test at Lord's, starting August 29.
