History of England v Sri Lanka test series

Cricket: History of England versus Sri Lanka test matches, ahead of the first test at Lord's which starts on Thursday (England have won seven, Sri Lanka four while four have been drawn):

1981-2

Following a turgid six-test series against an India side content to bat out five draws after winning the first, England turned with relief to the hospitable island of Sri Lanka and the home side's inaugural test.

Arjuna Ranatunga, an 18-year-old left-hander, demonstrated his potential with 54 in Sri Lanka's inadequate 218 while England fared little better, reaching 223 with David Gower restraining his attacking instincts long enough to compile 89.

Off-spinner John Emburey (6-33) combined with the brisk left-armer Derek Underwood (3-67) to dismiss the Sri Lankans for 175, leaving England to hit the winning runs with seven wickets to spare.

The two England spinners then joined a rebel tour to South Africa, incurring a three-year test ban which spelt the end of Underwood's long and successful international career.

England 1 Sri Lanka 0

1984

Again England looked to Sri Lanka to provide some respite, this time from a relentless battering at the hands of the West Indies pace attack who had taken one of the handful of truly great sides to a 5-0 series win over Gower's team.

This time it was Sri Lanka who flourished in their first test at Lord's at the end of a long, hot summer.

Gower asked Sri Lanka to bat and two days later they were still at the crease with Ian Botham, at the height of his powers, reduced to bowling off-spin.

Sidath Wettimuny, a slender opener with an impeccable technique honed by assiduous practice and devoted study of C.B. Fry's "Batsmanship" scored 190 spread over 10 hours and 42 minutes. Captain Duleep Mendis stroked 111 and Ranatunga weighed in with 84 in a total of 491 for seven declared.

South African-born Allan Lamb, who had scored three centuries against West Indies, scored his fourth of the summer to spare England's blushes and ensure a draw. There was no doubt, though, who had gained the most from the five days in the sun.

England 0 Sri Lanka 0

1988

England had again endured a working over by the West Indies fast bowlers and by the time Sri Lanka arrived for another one-test tour they had gone 18 tests without a win. This time, though, the weather favoured the England seamers and after Sri Lanka had been bowled out for 194, England posted an ultimately winning total of 429 with wicketkeeper Jack Russell scoring 94 as a nightwatchman.

England 1-0

1991

For the third time, Sri Lanka followed West Indies for a late-season test at Lord's. Finally the tide had turned for the home side.

England had drawn a series against a West Indies side in slight but accelerating decline thanks to the imperious batting of captain Graham Gooch and a match-winning spell from their maverick left-arm spinner Phil Tufnell at the Oval.

Both played full parts again in a comfortable England victory after Alec Stewart had rescued the England first innings with his maiden test century. Gooch scored 174 in England's second innings, leaving the way clear for Tufnell to bowl out the Sri Lankans with five for 94.

England 1-0

1992-3

A demoralised England side arrived in Sri Lanka after three comprehensive defeats in as many tests in India. Gooch, who had driven himself to new heights of excellence as a batsman and inculcated pride and discipline in the national side, failed this time with the bat and decided not to make the trip to Colombo.

In his absence England were led by Alec Stewart, doubling as wicketkeeper, who played his part with 68 in England's first innings with 380.

Sri Lanka, captained by the now generously proportioned Ranatunga, responded with 469 with solid contributions from the middle order. England then succumbed to the Sri Lanka spinners in searing heat and debilitating humidity and Sri Lanka reached a modest target with five wickets to spare. It was Sri Lanka's first win over England, 11 years after their test debut, and their fourth overall in 43 tests.

Sri Lanka 1-0

1998

Sri Lanka had transformed the cricket world with their revolutionary tactics two years earlier, winning the World Cup by blazing away from the first ball and making formerly daunting run chases seem commonplace.

The one-off Oval test showcased their abilities to perfection. Ranatunga, who had developed into a wily, combative captain giving opponents as good as he got, asked England to bat on a pitch which seemed specifically designed for his match-winning off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.

England, though, appeared safe when centuries to Graeme Hick and John Crawley took the first innings to 445, despite a seven-wicket haul by Muralitharan. Ranatunga remained serene, with good reason. Left-hand opener Sanath Jayasuriya treated the match as just another one-dayer with 213 and Aravinda da Silva, who scored the match-winning century in the World Cup final, stroked 152 in a total of 591.

Muralitharan, whose contortionist's action had been criticised by England coach David Lloyd before the match, wove a spell over the England batting on the final day, obtaining extravagant turn with a match-winning nine for 65.

Sri Lanka 1-0

2000-01

After the dismal 1990s which ended with England ranked bottom of the then unofficial list of test-playing nations, captain Nasser Hussain and coach Duncan Fletcher had combined to transform England into a team capable of challenging everyone with the exception of Australia.

Although Hussain had enjoyed little luck with the bat he was tactically superb during an historic series win in Pakistan where Mike Atherton and Graham Thorpe had given master classes in playing spin in the sub-continent.

The team's resilience was tested to the full during England's first full test tour of Sri Lanka when they lost the first test in Galle by an innings after Marvan Attapatu had scored his fourth test double-century.

A bad-tempered match in Kandy, bedevilled by umpiring controversies, fluctuated from day to day and session to session on a pitch which, for once in Sri Lanka, gave the pace bowlers some assistance.

Darren Gough and Andy Caddick took eight wickets in Sri Lanka's first innings and 297 and a gritty century from Hussain helped England to a 90-run lead.

Gough, this time aided by Glamorgan off-spinner Robert Croft, took a further four wickets in Sri Lanka's second innings and England reached a tricky run target of 161 with three wickets to spare.

Thorpe scored an unbeaten century at number four to give England a narrow lead in the deciding test in the buildup to an extraordinary third day's play. Gough and Caddick scythed through the top of the Sri Lanka second innings and left-arm spinner Ashley Giles, one of the successes of the Pakistan tour, combined with Croft to dismiss Sri Lanka for 81.

Jayasuriya sent palpitations throughout the England dressing room with four cheap wickets before the impeccable Thorpe, adding an unbeaten 32 to his 113 not out in the first innings.

England 2-1

2002

Sri Lanka's first full tour of England proved a dismal disappointment in the early part of the English summer. They arrived without Muralitharan who had sustained a dislocated shoulder and failed to win a single first-class game.

They managed a draw in the first test with their match-winner away before losing the next two tests to give England their first two-test winning margin since 1985.

In the third test at Old Trafford England completed a dramatic win when they successfully chased a target of 50 to win off six overs after a draw had looked certain.

England 2-1

2003-4

Michael Vaughan, who had succeeded Hussain as captain, emulated his predecessor's attritional approach against the Sri Lanka spinners but this time without success.

The England batsmen adopted purely defensive strategies against Muralitharan and his partners to scrape draws in the first two tests, with Vaughan scoring a century in the second.

But they exhausted both their physical and mental resources and in Colombo Muralitharan spun through their defences and England succumbed by an innings and 215 runs, their third biggest defeat in history.

Sri Lanka 1-0

LONDON, Tuesday (Reuters)