For the First Time in 147 Years: England’s Ollie Pope Sets a Historic Record. A Feat Not Even Achieved by Legends Like Don Bradman or Sachin Tendulkar.
Friday was a memorable day for Ollie Pope. After managing just 30 runs in his four previous innings since stepping in as England captain for the injured Ben Stokes at the start of the series against Sri Lanka, Pope found his form again in spectacular fashion. Playing on his home ground at The Oval, he scored his first century as England captain on the opening day of the third Test against Sri Lanka. By the end of play, which was cut short due to bad light, Pope was unbeaten on 103 runs from 103 balls, with England comfortably placed at 221-3.
This was Pope’s seventh Test century, and remarkably, each of these centuries has come against a different opponent — a unique achievement in the 147-year history of Test cricket.
Sri Lanka, already trailing 2-0 in the three-match series, failed to capitalize on the overcast conditions and a pitch with a tinge of green, even after captain Dhananjaya de Silva won the toss.
England could have had another century-maker in opener Ben Duckett, who gave away his wicket after scoring 86. Duckett commended his captain for ignoring criticism from figures like former England captain Michael Vaughan, who had questioned Pope’s ability to juggle the demands of leadership while batting at No. 3.
“There’s been a lot of noise around Popey in recent weeks,” Duckett said after the day’s play. “To shut it all out and score a brilliant hundred was incredible,” he added, referring to Pope’s 12th first-class century on his home ground at Surrey.
A rare positive for Sri Lanka came with Joe Root’s dismissal for 13 just before tea. Root was fresh off two centuries in a 190-run victory at Lord’s, where he set a new record with 34 Test centuries for England.
England, having already swept the West Indies 3-0 earlier in the season, are aiming for their first home Test series clean sweep since 2004, when Michael Vaughan led the team to seven consecutive victories.
Duckett started well, striking consecutive cover drives for fours off Milan Rathnayake’s deliveries. In contrast, makeshift opener Dan Lawrence, usually a middle-order batsman, struggled in the absence of the injured Zak Crawley. Lawrence, on just five, misjudged a short ball from Lahiru Kumara and was caught at gully.
Pope, batting at number three, got off the mark with a stylish cut for four off Rathnayake and followed it up with a hooked six off Kumara. Meanwhile, Duckett reached a quick fifty off just 48 balls, featuring seven boundaries.
Despite the floodlights being on, the umpires decided the light was too poor to continue, halting play with England at 76-1 off 15 overs. Rain soon followed, delaying the match until 1410 GMT.
Duckett, showing aggression, ramped Kumara for six over fine leg and uppercut another over third man, as Sri Lanka’s four-man pace attack struggled with consistency. However, just short of his fourth century in 26 Tests, Duckett was dismissed when he misjudged a scoop shot off Rathnayake, caught by wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal with England at 140-2.
Reflecting on his dismissal, Duckett said, “When you play that way for a while, you can’t be too hard on yourself, but I did miss out on a Test hundred there. It might be a learning experience for me, but it’s a shot I’ve been considering in Test cricket for some time, and it felt like the right choice.”
Pope had a bit of luck when he top-edged a six off Kumara, but the persistent pacer later dismissed Root with a hook shot to fine leg, where Vishwa Fernando made the catch despite slipping on the wet outfield.
Pope, a fan favorite at Surrey, reached his first Test century at The Oval by square-driving Asitha Fernando for his 13th four in 102 balls, also having hit two sixes.
By doing so, in his 49th Test match, Pope became the first player to score his first seven Test centuries against seven different teams.
