Sri Lanka skipper Dhananjaya de Silva has acknowledged that his team would have favored at least one more warm-up match ahead of their highly anticipated Test series against England, marking the island nation’s first red-ball tour to the UK in eight years. The companies recently played a four-day practice willing at New Road against an England Lions side but suffered a seven-wicket defeat after being dismissed for just 139 runs in the first innings.
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Although Sri Lanka’s batting improved in the second innings, they cranium in the opening Test at Old Trafford, Manchester, with limited match practice in English conditions. The conditions here are quite different from those in Asia. We wanted to play a few competitions before the sequence began, but that’s what we were given,” Dhananjaya said, reflecting on the challenges of adapting to England’s seaming and swinging conditions.
The Sri Lankan skipper revealed that the team had investigated with a few players during the warm-up rather than fielding their full-strength XI. “We didn’t play our strongest side in the practice match. The idea was to give some players a chance and test combinations. The result wasn’t ideal, but the preparation we got from that game should help us in the Tests,” he added confidently.
England vs Sri Lanka 2026: Jon Lewis Reflects on Coaching Stint as Teams Eye Redemption
Having led Sri Lanka to victory in all three Tests he has captained so far, Dhananjaya is optimistic despite the lack of preparation time. He suggested that the tight schedule in arrears to this being Sri Lanka’s first three-match Test series since 2018 may have prevented the inclusion of another warm-up fixture. I don’t really know the reason, maybe it’s because we’re playing a three-Test series after such a long gap. That could have made scheduling tricky,” he said.
Our mental state is good. The practice match was meant for training and adjustment, and we’ve taken what we needed from it. Dhananjaya also highlighted the role of experience in the camp, mentioning that several senior players who have played in English conditions before are sharing their insights with the younger members of the squad. “It’s been a while since we last played here, but some of our players have experience in these conditions.
While Sri Lanka continues their preparations, England’s white-ball side created history on another front. They became only the third team ever to surpass 300 runs in an ODI International, and notably, the first to achieve the feat against a Full Member nation. The previous record stood at India’s 297/6 against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad in 2024. Despite these batting heroics, England have endured mixed results across formats in recent months.
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England vs Sri Lanka 2026: Jon Lewis Reflects on Coaching Stint as Teams Eye Redemption
During one rain-affected ODI, the team had slumped to 79-7 after 25 overs before a four-hour delay turned the contest into a shortened 31-over game. The interruptions, however, spared England from further embarrassment while deepening Sri Lanka’s wait for a breakthrough win in the tournament. Meanwhile, on the coaching front, Jon Lewis, who had previously served as bowling coach with the England men’s setup.
Later, as head coach of the Sri Lanka team, he reflected on his experience. Lewis emphasized the importance of collaboration and consistency throughout his time in care. I want to make sure everyone’s working together, keeping high standards in both training and play. Team unity has always been at the heart of Gloucestershire and, somewhat, I value deeply,” he said. Lewis’s stint as Sri Lanka’s head instructor, which began in November 2022, included series 2023.
However, England fell short in both ODIs under his control, with the campaign disastrous in Sri Lanka, where the team lost every match. The ECB later replaced him and Heather Knight with Charlotte and Nat Sciver-Brunt as the new head coach and skipper, respectively. As the Sri Lanka Test series nears, both nations find themselves at a crossroads. Sri Lanka is eager to prove itself overseas, and England is searching for rehabilitated consistency across formats.
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