England vs Sri Lanka 3rd Test predictions: Pope can rediscover runscoring touch on home turf
- England captain Ollie Pope has scored 11 first-class centuries at The Oval
- Sri Lanka have had opening stands of six, nought, 18 and 19 in the first two Tests
- Recommended bet: Ollie Pope England top runscorer
England beat the West Indies 3-0 in their first home Test series of the summer and they are bidding to seal another clean sweep in Friday's third Test against Sri Lanka.
Despite the absences of injured captain Ben Stokes, opening batsman Zak Crawley and fast bowler Mark Wood, England have outclassed the Lankans in the first two matches at Old Trafford and Lord's.
Joe Root scored centuries in each innings of the second Test at Lord's but Sri Lanka's top-order batsmen have struggled and they will want to sign off with an improved performance at The Oval.
Team news
Stokes is injured so Ollie Pope will again captain England. Fast bowler Mark Wood has been ruled out of the series with a thigh strain and uncapped left-armer Josh Hull is in the squad.
Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal played as a specialist batsman at Lord's due to a thumb injury and Nishan Madushka is likely to keep wicket again.
Fast bowler Lahiru Kumara picked up five wickets on his return to the side in the second Test so he should keep his place.
The stats
England have won all five of their home Test matches this summer
Joe Root's last six Test innings have been 122, 87, 42, 62 not out, 143 and 103
Pope has scored 11 first-class centuries at The Oval
Sri Lanka's Asitha Fernando is the leading bowler in the series with 14 wickets in two Tests
The Lankans have had opening stands of six, nought, 18 and 19 in the first two matches
Kamindu Mendis has scored three centuries and three fifties in his first nine Test innings
Prediction
England are hot favourites to make it six Test wins out of six this summer when they face Sri Lanka at The Oval.
Early wickets have undermined the Lankans' chances in the first two matches although their lower-order batters have shown some quality and fast bowler Fernando has picked up 14 wickets in two games.
Pope's form at number three has come under scrutiny given his scores of six, six, one and 17 while deputising for injured skipper Stokes.
However, Pope looks too big a price to top-score in England's first innings at The Oval, where he has a stunning first-class record for Surrey.
He has scored 11 centuries at the venue and his only two Test appearances at his home ground produced first-innings knocks of 81 against India in 2021 and 67 against South Africa the following year.
The criticism of Pope seems a little harsh given that he started the home summer with scores of 57, 121 and 51 against the Windies and he may well bounce back in familiar surroundings.
