Former England batter Mark Butcher slammed the Sri Lankan side for a lack of game awareness at the start of Day 3 of the first Test against England in Manchester on August 23 as well. With England on 259/6 in response to Sri Lanka’s first innings total of 236 at stumps on Day 2, the Test match was hanging in the middle. However, Sri Lanka started Day 3 with Asitha Fernando bowling the first over without realizing he had bowled the final over on Day 2 as well. Finally, left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya opened the bowling after a slight delay to bring the protective gears for the close-in fielders as well which made Butcher fuming.

He said while speaking to Sky Sports: “I don’t understand how a professional Test cricket team cannot be ready to do that on a day such as today. And that’s pretty much my rant over because it’s just, it’s unfathomable that they wouldn’t have had an idea as an absolute collective, not just the captain, you know, there are coaches that have millions of backroom staff for every cricket team at the moment. How they’ve gone out there unprepared and ready to go and go hard at England this morning, I will never know.”

“I cannot understand for the life of me, I really can’t, how at the start of a day’s play you do not know exactly what you’re doing. Day three, huge day, you’re still very much in the Test match, you’ve hung in there for two days and showed a lot of character. How do you not know, every single man on that field know, exactly what is going to be happening first ball. Who’s bowling, what fields we are going to have, what our plan is in terms of keeping Smith perhaps away from the bowling or putting him under pressure when he starts again, and that just completely blows my mind,” further added Butcher.

However, coming to action in the first Test, England have taken the upper hand at the halfway mark in the game. After restricting Sri Lanka to 236 in their first innings, the hosts scored 358 in their first innings. Rookie wicketkeeper Jamie Smith continued his stunning show to Test
cricket by scoring a brilliant 111 off 148 deliveries. Notably, Sri Lanka still trail by 27 runs as Mathews continues to bat at 42* with
another 44 overs left in the day’s play.