One of the tenets of so-called Bazball is to put on a show for the crowd and on the second day of this summer’s final Test match – a day that transported the spectators back to the village green at times – Ollie Pope tried his best to adhere to it.
But at 5.35pm, Pope having deployed spin from both ends for 17 straight overs after tea in a bid to keep the game moving, the umpires Joel Wilson and Chris Gaffaney decided enough was enough. Bad light had once again brought an early close at the Oval – the crowd almost resigned to the prospect and so less agitated than on day one – with Sri Lanka having reached 211 for five in reply to England’s slightly wasteful 325 all out.
