TOP SPIN AT THE TEST: England on hot winning streak away from home

TOP SPIN AT THE TEST: England on hottest winning streak away from home in Test cricket since 1957… while Joe Root is quickly on his way to becoming the country’s most successful captain

  • England have grabbed a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series against Sri Lanka in Galle
  • England claimed a seven-wicket victory thanks to their first-innings damage
  • Joe Root’s England side are on a hot winning Test streak away from home
  • Meanwhile, England have enjoyed great fortune in Sri Lanka in recent times 

Jonny Bairstow and Dan Lawrence put to bed any fears of a batting collapse on Monday morning as they guided England over the line to a seven-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the first Test in Galle. 

After three quickfire wickets near the close of play on Sunday, Bairstow and Lawrence ticked off the final 36 runs needed after England did all of their damage in the first innings thanks to captain Joe Root’s superb double century.

And with the result now wrapped up, Sportsmail’s Lawrence Booth has looked at the main takeaways from the action in Galle…

Dan Lawrence and Jonny Bairstow led England to a fourth straight Test win away from home

England have now won four away Tests in a row, following victories early last year at Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Johannesburg. The last time they achieved that was between March 1955 and January 1957, in New Zealand and South Africa. 

Their longest victorious sequence away from home is seven Tests, between December 1911 and January 1914 in Australia and South Africa.

Joe Root now has 24 wins as Test captain, behind only Michael Vaughan’s 26 for England. 

Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss also had 24 victories, but from 59 and 50 Tests respectively, to Root’s 45.

England have won their last five Tests in Sri Lanka. 

Their only better sequence away from home against one opponent is eight against South Africa, though all those matches were in the 19th century. England also won their first five Tests in Bangladesh.

England have enjoyed great fortune in Sri Lanka recently, winning their last five Tests there




Share this article

Source: Read Full Article