England showed they are not ‘one-dimensional’ – Pope

Stand-in captain Ollie Pope says England’s hard-fought win over Sri Lanka shows they are not a “one-dimensional” team.

England, renowned for their Bazballing aggression, had to adapt to some difficult conditions in a chase of 205 to clinch the first Test on the fourth day at Emirates Old Trafford.

They eventually completed their pursuit in the 58th over, at one stage scoring at only two runs per over, with Joe Root unbeaten on 62 in a 128-ball stay that included just two fours.

“On another day you might see us try to knock that off in 20 less overs,” said Pope, who is leading England in the absence of the injured Ben Stokes.

“It shows where we’re coming on as a team overall, we’re not just a one-dimensional team where we want to go out and score quickly. We want to keep reading situations slightly better and try to be as ruthless as we can.

“If we feel like that is a way to go, it’s not all about trying to score as quickly as we can, it’s about getting the job done.”

Rapid run-scoring was a feature of England’s play when Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum took charge in 2022.

But some recklessness with the bat cost England in the 2-2 Ashes draw last summer and the 4-1 defeat in India earlier this year, after which McCullum said their style needed to be “refined”.

The 3-0 win over West Indies in July was England’s first series triumph since the end of 2022 and they made it four consecutive victories by beating Sri Lanka.

“Ultimately, they want to win,” former England captain Michael Vaughan told Test Match Special.

“If you look at the last few years, it’s been great fun, it’s been great entertainment. I love the way they play, but fundamentally it’s about lifting trophies.”

England were without Mark Wood for the fourth day in Manchester after the fast bowler sustained a thigh injury on day three.

Wood, 34, had a scan on Saturday and England are set to provide a squad update on Sunday.

Pope said he “doesn’t know” the extent of the injury, but it seems unlikely Wood will be able to play in the second Test at Lord’s which begins on Thursday.

That would leave Olly Stone in line for his first Test in more than three years, with England possibly looking to add cover in their squad in the shape of Sam Curran, uncapped Essex bowler Sam Cook or Leicestershire 20-year-old Josh Hull.

And Vaughan, who captained England to victory in the 2005 Ashes, said it was right to be cautious with Wood, especially with an eye on the tour to Australia in 2025-26.

“Mark Wood is the key,” said Vaughan. “Ben Stokes is a talisman and an incredible cricketer who England are missing, but they miss Mark Wood more because he can bowl 90mph so consistently.

“I can’t see him playing at Lord’s, maybe not at all this summer, because he needs to be fit for Australia. If they have him fit out there, they can do something special.”

Pope, 26, has served as vice-captain to Stokes. The Surrey man led England for the first time in Manchester despite only taking charge of one previous first-class match. He will remain as captain for the rest of the three-match series.

Stokes, who has a hamstring injury, has been with the England squad throughout the first Test and will be for the final two matches.

“It was different, more so in the field,” said Pope. “There were some good lessons learned for me.

“I think Stokesy was bored at times. He’d much rather be playing. He was great. Every now and again I’d pick his brain, more than he comes to me.

“He wanted to give me my own space to do it my own way, but I know there will be conversations with him and [McCullum] while we’re on the pitch about potential plans for different batters, which is great to have when we come off for a break.”