Captain Pope looking to 'reward' England with runs

Ollie Pope averages 34.64 from his 47 Tests for England

Stand-in captain Ollie Pope wants to "reward" his England side by scoring runs in the second Test against Sri Lanka at Lord's.

Leading England in place of the injured Ben Stokes, Pope won his first match in charge, the series opener at Old Trafford last week.

But the 26-year-old, batting at number three, managed scores of only six in both innings in Manchester.

"I learned how I can have my batting and captaincy separate," Pope told BBC Sport. "For me, it is about as soon as we get off the pitch, drawing a line under that and then focus on batting."

Pope has been vice-captain to Stokes for almost two years and will be in charge for the entire series against Sri Lanka after the all-rounder was ruled out with a hamstring injury.

Though part of the management team and clearly with his place in the side not under any immediate threat, there is still an argument that Pope's spot in the England side is the least secure of the regular top six.

"The runs didn't come for me but for the team to get the win, that's the most important thing," he added.

"Hopefully over the next couple of weeks, I can put some good scores together and reward the team with some runs."

And Pope, who averages 34.64 from his 47 Tests, has sought the advice of Joe Root on combining the twin roles of captaincy and batting.

Root, 33, led England in a record 64 Tests before he was replaced by Stokes in 2022. He averaged 46.44 with the bat as skipper, going through an incredible patch of form towards the end of his tenure, even though his team's results were deteriorating.

"It's nothing massive, but it's about finding a way to get into your old routine of how you go out and bat," said Pope.

"It's just making sure that I keep doing what has brought success over the last couple of years and having that on repeat. It's just finding a way to compartmentalise.

"Chatting to Rooty, he's obviously got a great cricket brain and is England's best batter so we just bounce a few ideas off each other."

England's Test side has undergone significant upheaval over the past year. With injuries to Stokes, opener Zak Crawley and pace bowler Mark Wood, only four of the side that played in the final Ashes Test against Australia will line up at Lord's on Thursday.

The latest change is a recall for Olly Stone to play his first Test in more than years in place of Wood, who has been ruled out of the rest of the series with a hamstring injury.

Stone, 30, has been dogged by injuries since he made his Test debut in 2019. This will be only his fourth cap in five years, all against different opponents.

Overall, the Nottinghamshire man has had four stress fractures in his back, leading him to a career-saving operation to insert two screws in his spine. On Tuesday he revealed the role pilates has played in his return to full fitness.

While not possessing the lightning pace of Wood, Stone is still capable of bowling at 90mph.

"He's feeling really good about his body and his bowling," said Pope. "He's such an exciting bowler, someone who has really impressed when he's pulled the Test shirt on before so hopefully he can really excel now.

"He's going to love every bit of being out here this week, being back playing Test cricket. be ready to go and very excited."

Sri Lanka have made two changes to the side beaten in Manchester.

Batter Pathum Nissanka will play his first Test in two years in place of Kusal Mendis, while Lahiru Kumara, a bowler of genuine pace, replaces left-armer Vishwa Fernando.

Dinesh Chandimal, who was struck on the thumb by Mark Wood in the first Test, may not keep with wicket, with the gloves passed to Nishan Madushka.

"We gave a good fight in the first Test, but that's not enough," said captain Dhananjaya de Silva. "We have to be more accurate with our plans.

"I was confident before Old Trafford, but we couldn't deliver our best."