Jamie Smith’s fifty took England into a narrow first-innings lead against Sri Lanka

Jamie Smith’s latest Test fifty took England into a narrow first-innings lead in their series opener against Sri Lanka at Old Trafford on Thursday. England were 259-6 in reply to Sri Lanka’s 236, a slender advantage of 23 runs, when a combination of bad light and rain forced an early close to the second day of the three-Test series.

Smith, promoted up the order to No 6 in the absence of injured captain Ben Stokes, was 72 not out — the 24-year-old wicketkeeper’s third fifty in his four Tests. Once again he demonstrated his ability to both support an established batsman and keep the runs coming batting with the lower order.

Together with Harry Brook (56) and Chris Woakes (25), Smith shared stands of 62 and 52 respectively before both batsmen were bowled by superb deliveries from left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya, who enjoyed an economical return of 2-58 in 21 overs. After rain washed out Thursday’s morning session, England were faltering at 67-3 in the 15th over, with paceman Asitha Fernando leading the way during a haul of 3-68 in 14 overs.

Sri Lanka had collapsed to 6-3, losing their first three wickets for no runs in 10 balls on Wednesday. But their bowlers still had runs to play after captain Dhananjaya de Silva top-scored with 74 after winning the toss, while Milan Rathnayake made 72 as he set a new record for the highest score by any Test debutant batting at No 9.

Shortly after play resumed Thursday under grey skies, Asitha Fernando thought he had Dan Lawrence lbw for 10.

But Lawrence, recalled to open after Zak Crawley was sidelined with a broken finger, successfully reviewed umpire Paul Reiffel’s decision on height. Two balls later, however, the paceman’s inswinger to Ben Duckett, who added just five to his overnight 13, had the left-hander leg before with Sri Lanka overturning Reiffel’s original not out verdict on this occasion.

Asitha Fernando’s day got even better when he dismissed Ollie Pope, captaining England for the first time after Stokes was ruled out by a torn hamstring, for six with a ball that nipped back through a gap between bat and pad.

Lawrence, however, looked in good touch until on 30 he edged a ball angled across him from left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando to diving wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal.

Pope’s exit, however, had brought in Root, with the former England captain boasting a superb record against Sri Lanka of more than a 1,000 runs, including four hundreds, in 11 previous Tests at an average of nearly 60. Asitha Fernando, though, ended a promising stand of 58 when Root, who had made a typically elegant 42, inside-edged an intended drive, with Chandimal diving forward to hold a fine low catch.

But new batsman Smith confidently advanced down the pitch to drive Jayasuriya for six before Brook completed a 59-ball fifty. But on the same ground where Shane Warne bowled Mike Gatting with the ‘Ball of the Century’ in 1993, Jayasuriya made a bid for the modern-day equivalent by snaring Brook in stunning style.

The 25-year-old rising star had added just three runs to his tea score of 53 not out when he was turned inside out by a ball from left-armer Jayasuriya that dipped in on the line of middle and leg stumps before spinning sharply and bouncing to clip the top of off stump. Brook’s exit left England 187-5 and Woakes fell in similar fashion when clean bowled by a quicker Jayasuriya delivery that angled in and spun significantly away from the right-hander.