Sri Lanka v England: first Test, day one – live!

3.29am EST 03:29

40th over: Sri Lanka 113-6 (Shanaka 17, Hasaranga 3) An over with no mishaps: things are looking up for Sri Lanka.

“Morning Tim …” Morning, David Horn. ”A Smyth/ de Lisle opening partnership is very much the OBO equivalent of Anderson/Broad. I’m old enough to remember Booth/Bull (Harmison/Hoggard?) opening up the OBO in years gone by – another venerable double act. What a treat to have Test cricket back. I wanted the BBC to give the ECB a special award in their December shindig for the work they did last year with their bubble, and it’s not often in the last 35+ years of following cricket that I’ve said that about the sports governing body. I love football as well, but if there was ever a tonic for our times, it’s Test cricket. Fabulous to have it back, and in the capable hands of Smyth/de Lisle. Welcome back.” Thank you! Too kind. And amen to the bit about the bubble – 2020 was such a weird year that we even learned to love the ECB.

3.25am EST 03:25

39th over: Sri Lanka 110-6 (Shanaka 15, Hasaranga 2) Bess nearly nabs another as Shanaka plays a glance perilously close to the man at leg slip. No alarms for the new batsman, the exciting Hasaranga. He’s just been Player of the Tournament in the Lanka Premier League, so we can be fairly sure he’s got the personality that this situation demands.

3.20am EST 03:20

Wicket! Dickwella c Sibley b Bess 12 (SL 105-6)

Another one! And it’s a shocker. Bess offers Dickwella a long hop, and Dickwella pops it to backward point, where Sibley just recovers from his amazement in time to scoop it off the turf. Bad ball, bad shot, good catch.

3.17am EST 03:17

Drinks: SL 105-5

So it’s been England’s hour, and England’s day so far – though Mahela Jayawardene thinks 250 is a decent score here.

That was too kind from Rob. The man is a star – and a team player, which may explain why he took the 4am shift this morning, allowing me to clock on at 8.15.

3.13am EST 03:13

38th over: Sri Lanka 105-5 (Dickwella 12, Shanaka 12) Leach is starting to find his rhythm. He didn’t bowl badly at the start, but you could tell he was a bit rusty.

Well, that’s it from me. The great Tim de Lisle will be with you for the rest of the day – please email him on tim.delisle.casual@theguardian.com or tweet @TimdeLisle.

3.09am EST 03:09

37th over: Sri Lanka 102-5 (Dickwella 9, Shanaka 12) Wood beats Shanaka with a terrific bouncer. Shanaka shaped to hook, realised that was a fool’s errand and dropped his hands at the last minute. Wood’s average speed is in excess of 90mph, which is admirable in this humidity.

Updated at 3.11am EST

3.04am EST 03:04

36th over: Sri Lanka 97-5 (Dickwella 5, Shanaka 11) Before this game, Jack Leach was something like 6/5 to be England’s leading wickettaker in the series. I couldn’t be bothered to put the mortgage on it but I wish I had; he should outbowl Dom Bess, and I’d be staggered if a seamer takes more wickets than him on these pitches.

Shanaka, who has started positively, sweeps Leach flat and hard for four more. His Test record is modest (avge 14 from five games) but he averages over 40 in first-class cricket so it’s fair to assume he can play.

3.01am EST 03:01

35th over: Sri Lanka 93-5 (Dickwella 5, Shanaka 7) Dickwella, a compulsively attacking player, tries to ramp Wood and is beaten for pace. Wood offers him another next ball but this time Dickwella sways out of the way.

Updated at 3.03am EST

2.58am EST 02:58

34th over: Sri Lanka 93-5 (Dickwella 5, Shanaka 7) Shanaka drags Leach over mid-on for four. Wood leapt optimistically but Shanaka got enough on it to clear him fairly comfortably.

“Hello Rob,” says Paul Smith. “You linked to the Byrds in your intro. I’ve been racking my brains but other than the Simon & Garfunkel classic I can’t think of any songs about Sri Lanka. Can anyone else?”

Erm, Kandy Pop by Bis? I’m quite intrigued by how the subconscious guides you towards certain songs. I’ve had The Rat by the Walkmen in my head for the last 48 hours, particularly the line, “You’ve got a nerve to be asking a favour.” I’m convinced it’s because of all the Galle puns that were used in the various series previews, gall being a synonym of nerve.

Updated at 3.03am EST

2.52am EST 02:52

33rd over: Sri Lanka 89-5 (Dickwella 5, Shanaka 3) Mark Wood replaces Broad, whose figures of 9-3-20-3 are quietly outrageous, if that isn’t an oxymoron. After a couple of 87mph looseners – 87mph looseners! – Wood is back over 90mph. The pitch is really slow, though, and Dickwell and Shanaka play him fairly comfortably. Dickwella has enough time to touch the last ball of the over off the pads for four.

2.45am EST 02:45

31st over: Sri Lanka 83-5 (Dickwella 0, Shanaka 2) Dickwella bat-pads Broad into the leg side. There’s no short leg and the ball lands safely. Another maiden from Broad, who looks shattered and will surely take a break.

2.40am EST 02:40

30th over: Sri Lanka 83-5 (Dickwella 0, Shanaka 2) Sri Lanka have played some really poor shots today. Kusal Mendis is the only batsman who didn’t give his wicket away. As he was out for a fourth consecutive duck, I doubt he’ll be clambering up the moral high ground.

Updated at 2.48am EST

2.37am EST 02:37

WICKET! Sri Lanka 81-5 (Chandimal c Curran b Leach 28)

Another one! These are golden wickets for England. Leach tosses one up to Chandimal, who thumps it inside out towards cover. Curran moves to his right and swoops forward to take a fine low catch.

Updated at 2.41am EST

2.36am EST 02:36

29th over: Sri Lanka 81-4 (Chandimal 28, Dickwella 0) In conditions that could barely be tougher for quick bowlers, Stuart Broad has figures of 8-2-20-3. The man’s an animal.

Updated at 2.37am EST

2.34am EST 02:34

WICKET! Sri Lanka 81-4 (Mathews c Root b Broad 27)

That’s a huge wicket! Mathews slashes loosely at a shortish delivery outside off stump, and Root takes a brilliant catch to his right at slip. Stuart Broad, the remarkable Stuart Broad, has three wickets.

Updated at 2.36am EST

2.32am EST 02:32

28.5 overs: Sri Lanka 81-3 (Mathews 27, Chandimal 28) Chandimal hooks Broad for a single. The outfield is very slow, which is another reason why Sri Lanka’s score is probably better than it looks. We’re only a session into the match but it’s already beautifully poised.

Updated at 2.34am EST

2.29am EST 02:29

28th over: Sri Lanka 80-3 (Mathews 27, Chandimal 27) Sri Lanka are inching towards a decent position. This was always going to be such an important partnership, and I’d imagine Dan Lawrence is struggling to put that dropped catch before lunch out of his mind.

2.26am EST 02:26

27th over: Sri Lanka 79-3 (Mathews 27, Chandimal 26) We’re having a few technical problems I’m afraid, though you haven’t missed much.

2.21am EST 02:21

26th over: Sri Lanka 78-3 (Mathews 27, Chandimal 25) Hello! Out of nothing, Mathews chips Leach straight back over his head for six. That shot also brings up a calm, authoritative fifty partnership with Chandimal.

Updated at 2.26am EST

2.16am EST 02:16

25th over: Sri Lanka 69-3 (Mathews 21, Chandimal 22) Stuart Broad, who took two early wickets, returns after lunch in place of Dom Bess. Angelo Mathews thick edges a cutter to third man for four, which takes him to 6,000 Test runs. He’s only the fifth Sri Lanka to reach that milestone after Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva.

Updated at 2.17am EST

1.33am EST 01:33

That was a decent morning for England. Stuart Broad took two wickets in a smart new-ball spell, and then Kusal Perera gave Dom Bess a wicket with an ill-conceived reverse sweep. Sri Lanka were in big trouble at 25 for three, but Angelo Mathews and the stand-in-captain Dinesh Chandimal calmly restored order. For the most part they played really well, though Chandimal was dropped by Dan Lawrence in the covers just before lunch.

1.32am EST 01:32

Lunch

24th over: Sri Lanka 65-3 (Mathews 17, Chandimal 22) Leach bowls the last over before lunch and beats Chandimal with another jaffa that curves in and then rips past the outside edge. That’s lunch.

1.24am EST 01:24

22nd over: Sri Lanka 61-3 (Mathews 13, Chandimal 22) Chandimal slaps Leach towards cover, where the debutant Lawrence drops a sitter. Eesh, that’s not a great way to start your Test career, and could be costly in what is likely to be a low-scoring game.

“Hello Rob, I appreciate your real emotional connection to the game, and your deep knowledge…” says Zaph. “However. I recently plugged into the OBO of the Aussie v India games and there’s loads more detail, e.g. the field settings, notes on variations on all balls of the over, field changes; whereas you only give the ‘highlights’ of these things. Can you not be bothered? And no, I’m not writing to Mr. correctness Ingle, just wondering what your thoughts are, do you read those OBOs?”

No, I can’t be bothered.

Updated at 1.25am EST

1.21am EST 01:21

21st over: Sri Lanka 61-3 (Mathews 13, Chandimal 22) A couple of deliveries from the spinner have already gone through the top, which suggests this pitch will crumble long before day five. Bess and Leach have experience of bowling on surfaces like that at Somerset, though so far they haven’t been at their best. That’s understandable – Bess is bowling in a Test in Asia for the first time, Leach is bowling in a Test for the first time since 2019.

Updated at 1.22am EST

1.19am EST 01:19

20th over: Sri Lanka 56-3 (Mathews 12, Chandimal 18) Mathews and Chandimal have played almost 150 Tests between them and know exactly what they are doing. They’re just accumulating sensibly – no fuss, no frills and hopefully no fourth wicket before lunch for England.

1.14am EST 01:14

19th over: Sri Lanka 52-3 (Mathews 11, Chandimal 17) It’s hard to know what a good score is on this pitch, but I suspect Sri Lanka would be content with 250, especially as England have to bat last. At the moment batting looks relatively comfortable. But in Galle, there is usually one with your name on it.

1.11am EST 01:11

18th over: Sri Lanka 50-3 (Mathews 10, Chandimal 16) “Morning Rob,” says Andy Bradshaw. “It’s a minor quibble considering he’s wanging it down at 90mph and making the batsmen play at it, but I do wish Wood slip a yorker in more often, considering how fast he is in the air and how slow the pitch is, why not take the pitch out of the equation?”

Always with the equations.