The three ODIs and three Twenty20 matches that had been billed could now take place in August, according to reports.
Confirmation of the matches in June and July being called off came from Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), with the national board citing coronavirus concerns as the reason.
An SLC statement read: "The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) informed Sri Lanka Cricket that due to the prevailing circumstances revolving around COVID-19 pandemic, the cricket series, which included three ODIs and three T20i matches will not be feasible."
SLC quoted a message it had received from the BCCI, confirming a wish to abide by cricket's future tours programme (FTP), provided health assurances have been received.
That BCCI message said it would need "to seek the advice from government of India and the health regulatory authorities before taking any decision for the resumption of cricket".
According to Sri Lankan newspaper The Island, India would be prepared to tour in August if they obtain governmental permission to make the trip.
Bangladesh are due to tour Sri Lanka in July and August for a three-Test series, but the Ceylon Daily News this week reported those matches were in doubt.
It quoted Bangladesh Cricket Board director Akram Khan as saying the "chances are very slim" of the tour going ahead in its current calendar slot.
The Proteas were due to play three one-dayers and a trio of Twenty20 contests against their hosts, but the trip will now have to be rearranged.
Sri Lanka and South Africa jointly announced the decision on Monday.
"It is very sad that we have been forced to take this step and we will re-schedule the tour as soon as cricket returns to a sense of normality and our international fixture list allows," said Cricket South Africa's acting chief executive Jacques Faul.
"Our Proteas would not have been able to prepare properly taking our own lockdown situation into account and, more importantly, health considerations for our players, which are always paramount, were the over-riding factor.
"It would have been a particularly important tour for us with the three ODIs counting for the new ICC one-day league and the T20 programme being part of our preparation for the ICC T20 World Cup scheduled for Australia later this year.
"It is very frustrating for the players who want to build on the good form they showed at the backend of our home summer against Australia."
To say a West Indies line-up, filled with explosive batting talent, has struggled to ignite so far seems a bit of an understatement. The team began the tournament being bowled out for 55 by England, then collapsing to 143 against South Africa after a promising start. The team got 142 in a win against Bangladesh but have yet to put in a convincing display at the crease.
With a run rate of 1.598, the team has the worst run rate in Group I and the third poorest overall. After three matches Evin Lewis is the team’s leading scorer with 68 runs but that total is not in the tournament’s top 15. Having lost two of its first three games and low run rate the team is on the outside looking as it relates to their chances of staying in contention for the semi-finals.
“The guys are confident, we know exactly what’s needed from a run rate perspective and we’ll take all things into consideration when that match starts,” Pollard told members of the media on Wednesday.
“I believe it’s very important that we try to go through the process of trying to improve each and every game as a team and especially from a batting perspective,” he added.
“It’s an opportunity now, guys can kind of take off the shackles that have been kind of holding us back in terms of our batting performances, there’s no secret about that. Having said that the first thing to think about is winning the cricket game.”
The tourists took a first-innings lead of 109 at the Galle International Stadium on Friday before bowling Sri Lanka out for only 113.
Nathan Lyon took 4-31 after claiming a five-wicket haul in the first innings, and part-time spinner Travis Head, who had never taken a Test wicket, claimed stunning figures of 4-10 as Sri Lanka folded.
Mitchell Swepson took the other two wickets, and after being set only five runs to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series, David Warner hit Ramesh Mendis for four and then six inside the first over to seal an emphatic victory.
Australia captain Cummins said: "A couple of new words we're using about our approach is about being proactive and being brave.
"We saw some really clear methods from all the batters. They might have been individually a bit different, but you saw everyone being really proactive and putting pressure back on the bowlers. It's something you'd normally talk about in one-day cricket or T20 cricket. But I think that's the style over here that's needed."
He added: "I think it's part of the environment that we are trying to create. Failure is absolutely okay, as long as you are failing in a way you are happy to be."
The paceman lavished praise on spinner Lyon, who moved into the top 10 on the list of all-time leading Test wicket-takers by taking his tally to 436.
"I wouldn't change Lyon for anyone," Cummins said. "He's gone into the top 10 wicket-takers of all time. You saw him out there. He's unplayable for left or right-handers.
"Sometimes out here, bounce for spinners is spoken about [as] something that's not desirable, but he showed here with that bounce he was unplayable. His stamina as well – you give him the ball from one end and say see you at the end of the day."
Australia captain Cummins has confirmed leg-spinner Swepson will play when the two-match series gets under way at the Galle International Stadium on Wednesday.
Swepson made his debut in the longest format during the series victory in Pakistan in March, taking two wickets in as many matches.
With Ashton Agar ruled out due to side strain and Jon Holland nursing a finger injury, the 28-year-old will get another opportunity in a Test that will be dedicated to the late, great Shane Warne four months after he tragically passed away.
Skipper Cummins said: "We're really happy with Swepo. He is bowling beautifully and really ready for this one.
"These conditions … it's quite different to what we experience in Australia. That's the challenge of trying to win overseas.
"A lot of our preparation work has been around trusting our own methods. We might go about it a little bit differently to how Sri Lanka will."
The paceman added: "I think his role here might be slightly different as well. Pakistan we knew was going to be a slow grind and I thought he did his job despite not taking the wickets he would like. He was a really important cog in that bowling engine.
"It's always exciting having a leggie in the side as a captain. It feels like a real luxury to throw him the ball and see him go about it."
Glenn Maxwell could provide another spin option along with first-choice tweaker Nathan Lyon if Travis Head misses out with a hamstring injury.
If World Test Championship leaders Australia take a 1-0 lead in their quest to win the Warne-Muralidaran Trophy, it will be their 400th Test victory. However, Sri Lanka have won each of their past three Tests against Australia on home soil.
Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh 1-0 away from home in their last Test series under new head coach Chris Silverwood.
Sri Lanka looking to put Australia in a spin
Captain Dimuth Karunaratne suggested Sri Lanka will select three spinners, with the uncapped Jeffrey Vandersay called up after impressing in a 3-2 ODI series win over Australia.
Lasith Embuldeniya, Praveen Jayawickrama and Ramesh Mendis are the other tweakers in the squad.
Sri Lanka have won eight of their past 12 Tests at Galle International Stadium, including the previous two.
Landmark Test for in-form Khawaja
Usman Khawaja has had a new lease of life since he was recalled during the 4-0 Ashes hammering of England.
The left-handed batter is set to play in his 50th Test in Galle on the back of an outstanding series in Pakistan - scoring two centuries and making 97 in the first Test.
Khawaja has an average of just 28.4 against Sri Lanka – his second lowest against any team he's played more than one Test against.
The teams will play three T20Is, three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and two Test matches in a bio-secure environment in Antigua from Wednesday, March 3 to Friday, April 2. The series will mark the fourth for the regional team since July but will be the first at home following overseas trips to England, New Zealand, and more recently Bangladesh.
The T20I series will create history as the first official international matches to be played by the West Indies Men’s team at the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) and the first West Indies T20Is to be played in Antigua since 2013. As reigning ICC T20 World Cup champions, West Indies will use these matches as important preparation for the defense of their T20 World Cup title which is scheduled to be held in India later this year.
The CG Insurance ODI Series will be played at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium on March 10, 12, and 14, with the third being a day/night encounter. The CG Insurance ODIs form part of the ICC Super League and these three matches provide the opportunity for West Indies to secure their first points as the team tries to qualify automatically for the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup in India.
The two Test matches will be played at the same venue with the first match starting on Sunday, March 21 and the second starting March 29, providing the West Indies with another opportunity to win points and climb the ICC World Test Championship table following the recent win in Bangladesh.
The last International West Indies Men’s Home Series featured Ireland in January.
Since making his debut against New Zealand, in December of last year, the batsman has averaged 37.62 in five Test matches, with a high score of 92. The half-century was one of two scored by the player during the period.
Da Silva has scored 301 runs so far, his innings often providing much-needed stability at crucial times in the team’s batting line-up. Despite narrowly missing out on a triple-figure and a few half centuries, the player admitted he was pleased with his work to date.
“I don’t think I could have been more proud of what I have done so far in Test cricket. I definitely would have wanted to convert some of those forties into fifties and that 90 into a 100, but hopefully there are going to be a lot more opportunities to do that,” Da Silva told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.
Da Silva recently played a crucial part in the Test series draw with Sri Lanka, which saw batsmen with the upper hand for most of the series, partly due to a flat surface.
“I don’t think we could fault any bowler or batsman according to the conditions. It was quite challenging for the bowlers. Overall, I thought we had a very positive series, a lot of good things came out of it.”
The Proteas' white-ball skipper this month agreed to lead his country in the longest format for the 2020-21 season.
De Kock will take on the duties for the encounters with Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Australia, replacing Faf du Plessis after the batsman stepped down in February.
Wicketkeeper-batsman De Kock ruled out staying on as captain, but is happy to fill in until a full-time successor to Du Plessis is appointed.
"When they [the South Africa selectors] told me the situation that we were in, I understood where they were coming from," De Kock said ahead of the first Test against Sri Lanka, which starts on Boxing Day.
"Obviously, I didn't accept it immediately. I did think about it and I understood, it's just for now. For this season. It's not a long-term thing.
"It's just [until] when we get someone who really puts up their hand, they will take over. The guys are looking for a long-term leadership role. I won't be doing that.
"There does seem a lot on my plate but I am quite happy to do it for now."
De Kock revealed he will retain the gloves in Test cricket, so it appears Kyle Verreynne will have to be patient before he is handed a debut.
"I wasn't going to keep in the ODIs against England. We were going to give someone else a chance and now that I am looking after the Test team, we are looking at ways to get a lot of things off my shoulders," De Kock said.
"But in Test cricket, I need to be there as keeper."
The Proteas, who won Friday's opener in the series by 28 runs, were hardly tested by their flat opponents, who managed just 103 in 18.1 overs. That was their lowest first-innings total at home in this short format.
South Africa wasted little time chasing that figure down, De Kock helping them open up a 2-0 series lead inside 15 overs.
Sri Lanka had little answer to South Africa's spinners – Bjorn Fortuin, Aiden Markram, captain Keshav Maharai and Tabraiz Shamsi – who took nine wickets and conceded just 63 runs in their 14.1 overs.
Markram finished with a career-best three for 21, which included the wicket of opener Kusal Perera for 30.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa was Sri Lanka's next highest scorer with 20 as the hosts lost seven for a paltry 32 runs between the 10th and 19th overs.
Sri Lanka failed to get rid of De Kock with a review following the fourth delivery of South Africa's innings and the 28-year-old did not look back.
He brought up his 10th T20I fifty, and fourth of the year, after his opening stand with Reeza Hendricks was broken in the ninth over when Hendricks was caught by Dinesh Chandimal off the bowling of Wanindu Hasaranga.
Markram added an unbeaten 21 as South Africa reached their target with almost seven overs to spare.
De Kock proves his importance
De Kock was rested for the ODI series, which Sri Lanka won 2-1, and he showed his worth here. He steered his side to victory with an unbeaten 58 off 48 deliveries and will be a key figure if South Africa are to challenge for the T20 World Cup, which begins next month.
Perera not backed up by team-mates
Perera got Sri Lanka off to a solid start with 30 from 25 balls, but his team-mates failed miserably to capitalise. The 31-year-old, making his comeback after recovering from COVID-19, hit a third of his side's runs, with only three others reaching double figures.
The Proteas, who clinched the series victory on Sunday, completed another routine win after the hosts limped to a run-a-ball 120-8, with Kagiso Rabada and Bjorn Fortuin taking two wickets apiece.
De Kock, who top-scored with 58 not out against in the previous game, was ably supported by Reeza Hendricks (56 not out) as the pair sealed victory inside 15 overs.
Sri Lanka opening batsmen Kusal Perera offered the most resistance, making 39, but when he was dismissed by Keshav Maharaj with the score at 80-5, the hosts failed to reach an imposing total once more.
Chamika Karunaratne managed an unbeaten 24 – his highest score in the format – but with De Kock and Hendricks racing to 46 without loss after the powerplay, another victory for the tourists was all but confirmed.
De Kock reached his 11th T20I fifty, and fifth for the year, off 40 balls and Hendricks followed suit, recording his sixth T20I half-century in two balls fewer as Maharaj's side triumphed with 32 balls remaining.
Miserly Maharaj
De Kock will steal the headlines with more top-order fireworks, but captain Maharaj should take credit as well as he continues to improve ahead of the spinning surfaces that await him at the T20 World Cup.
The left-armer assumed the captaincy role for his first ever T20I series and, in the final match, bowled a game-high 12 dot balls as he conceded just 14 runs from his full allocation, including the wicket of Perera.
Persistent Perera
Perera scored a third of his team's runs in the second T20I as he made 30 off 25 balls and he almost repeated the feat on Tuesday with his highest score of 2021.
However, the opener was not supported by his team-mates, with only Karunaratne and Dasun Shanaka (18) troubling the opposition bowlers, who dominated once more in Colombo.
The hosts headed into the contest on the back of coronavirus-interrupted preparations and ructions behind the scenes between players and the national board, but scrapped their way to a competitive 262-9 despite no player passing 50.
Dhawan - captaining a largely second-string India, given Virat Kohli's Test squad have departed for their Test series in England next month - ensured the tourists reached their target with 80 balls to spare, while debutant Ishan Kishan (59) and Prithvi Shaw (43) also impressed - the latter hitting nine of his 24 deliveries to the boundary.
Avishka Fernando and wicketkeeper Minod Bhanuka put on 49 for the opening wicket before Fernando lobbed Yuzvendra Chahal's (2-52) first delivery to Manish Pandey at short cover to depart for 33.
Leg-spinner Chahal excelled in tandem with slow left-armer Kuldeep Yadav (2-48), who accounted for Bhanuka (27) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa – the number three's breezy 24 from 22 deliveries briefly threatening to change the tempo – to leave Sri Lanka 89-3.
From that point it was a repeated story of useful contributions without anything substantial. New captain Dasun Shanaka and Charith Asalanka diligently compiled 39 and 38 respectively before each falling to swing bowler Deepak Chahar (2-37), while Krunal Pandya's miserly left-arm spin (1-26) snared up the middle overs, leaving Chamika Karunaratne's unbeaten 43 off 35 balls as Sri Lanka's highest score.
Shaw made it clear India would not be shackled in similar fashion as he climbed into Sri Lanka from the off.
Isuru Udana's two overs disappeared for 27 – including three successive fours through the covers - and the score was 58 when Fernando caught Shaw at long-on off Dhananjaya de Silva, whose two wickets came at a steep cost of 49 runs in five overs.
Kishan, who enjoyed an unforgettable 23rd birthday, ensured there was little let-up. He danced down the pitch to dispatch Dhananjaya for six first ball, clattering the next for four more through cover point.
The youngster reached a half-century in 33 balls and edged his 42nd behind off Lakshan Sandakan but Dhawan remained as a regal presence, finding further willing allies in Manish Pandey (26) and Suryakumar Yadav (31 not out) to complete a resounding victory.
Shanaka wants more variety from Sri Lanka
The difference between two – in isolation, at least – impressive opening partnerships set the tone for the contest. But the end of the first powerplay, Sri Lanka were 55-1. India were already up to 91-1 after 10 overs. "The Indians batted aggressively," Shanaka said. "We needed to vary the pace as the ball was coming on to the bat nicely. In the next game, we will have to improve on that."
Dhawan laughing as the elder statesman
When you've top-scored as a victorious captain and also surpassed 6,000 career ODI runs, there is perhaps no better time for self-deprecation. Dhawan certainly thought so, claiming he did not have the required shots to reach three figures with an exciting young batting line-up firing all around him.
"I was telling them to take it easy actually," he beamed, before chuckling his way through a post-match presentation where Shaw was named player of the match despite scoring half as many runs as his skipper.
"The way these young boys play in the IPL, they get lots of exposure and they just finished the game in the first 15 overs only. I thought about my hundred but there were not many runs left. When Surya came out to bat, I thought I need to improve my skills."
At the close of play, Karunaratne, who was dropped on 14 by Jermaine Blackwood, is on 132 and De Silva on 56. Together they have so far put on 97 for the fourth wicket as Sri Lanka eye a massive first innings total on Monday.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Sri Lanka got off to a slow start but gradually built momentum throughout the day.
Karunaratne and Nissanka opened the batting and crept to 61-0 without loss at lunch. The 50 partnership came off 132 balls as the home side took a more cautious approach against the West Indies bowling led by Shannon Gabriel.
The partnership would endure until after the interval when Gabriel induced an edge from Nissanka, who was caught at slip by Rahkeem Cornwall for 56 and with the score at 139.
The West Indies would make further inroads fairly quickly afterwards when at 164-1, Roston Chase dismissed Oshado Fernando for three and then at 170-2 removed Angelo Matthews also for three.
However, that was the last success the West Indies bowlers would have for the remainder of play.
Gabriel has so far taken 1-56 from 12 overs while Chase has 2-42 from 17.
Despite a pair of golden ducks from Andre Fletcher and Fabian Allen, the Falcons posted a competitive 168-6 from their 20 overs after the Stars won the toss and chose to field first.
Falcons captain Wanindu Hasaranga was excellent, producing an unbeaten 34-ball 77 including eight fours and three sixes. Ashen Bandara provided good support for the skipper with 40 against Kasun Rajitha’s 4-20 from four overs. Drakes chipped in with 1-32 from his four.
The Stars then needed just 18.5 overs to successfully reach their target for the loss of just four wickets. Charith Asalanka led the way with 64 off 40 balls including seven fours and three sixes and was supported well by Dinesh Chandimal (38), Ravi Bopara (29 not out) and captain Angelo Matthews (21).
The Stars will take on the Jaffna Kings in tomorrow’s final.
The regional team would have been encouraged by its batting, despite the failures of the middle order, with most of the top four coming good before the lower order showed a lot of grit in laying the finishing touches to an innings that had lost significant steam. Their bowlers couldn’t quite haul them to victory, but they pushed Sri Lanka to the limit, making the home team earn their win.
Sri Lanka will also have been encouraged, most notably the number of contributions they received from all around the batting order. Now, the key for them would be to retain that level of consistency and seal the series, something they haven’t been quite adept at doing in the recent past. But with the familiarity of home, and a hard-earned win to boot, they sure do have the belief that it can be done.
The nations were due to meet in March 2020, only for their two-match series to be postponed amid the escalating coronavirus pandemic. England were playing a tour game in Colombo at the time when the decision was taken to cut short the trip and head home.
They have returned 10 months later for a rearranged tour, with the ongoing COVID-19 situation seeing them hosted in a bio-secure bubble for both games in Galle.
However, Moeen Ali will miss the first Test – and possibly the next one that follows – after a positive test result upon arrival. Chris Woakes had to self-isolate having been considered a close contact, so missed out on England's only warm-up game.
Moeen was joint-leading wicket-taker with fellow spinner Jack Leach - taking 18 wickets apiece - when England swept the hosts 3-0 on spin-friendly pitches when visiting Sri Lanka in late 2018, though captain Joe Root is aware the surfaces may not be the same now.
"We are very aware that the conditions might be very different to the last time we played here," Root told the media.
"We are not going to have too many preconceived ideas about what we are going to come up against. It's quite dangerous and lazy to walk into a series like that."
The tourists are without Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes – who are both rested with a long tour to India to follow immediately afterwards – while opening batsman Rory Burns has remained in England for the birth of his first child.
As for the hosts, a recent 2-0 Test series defeat in South Africa came at a cost in terms of injuries. Dhananjaya de Silva and Kasun Rajitha are both sidelined, plus Oshada Fernando has had no match practice after a spell out of action.
However, there is good news over the fitness of batsman Dinesh Chandimal – who missed the second Test against the Proteas – and seamer Suranga Lakmal, plus former captain Angelo Mathews is back as Sri Lanka aim for a first Test win over their opponents since a famous triumph at Headingley in 2014.
JONNY BE GOOD AGAIN?
With holes to fill in the batting order due to key absences, England are set to hand a debut to Dan Lawrence and recall Jonny Bairstow, who appears to be the choice to bat at number three with Zak Crawley moving up to open.
Bairstow made a century at that position in the previous Test against Sri Lanka, the third time in four first-innings knocks he has reached three figures against them. However, he has not played in the format since 2019, having lost his place after averaging 18.6 in 19 innings during that year.
Wicketkeeper Ben Foakes played a starring role for England in Sri Lanka last time, averaging 69.25 with the bat, but looks set to miss out on the final XI.
LEADING FROM THE FRONT
Captain Dimuth Karunaratne's century in the second Test against South Africa was one of few positives for Sri Lanka in a 10-wicket defeat in Johannesburg to start the new year.
The opening batsman has averaged 66 on home soil in Tests since 2018 (14 innings), though none of his 10 career hundreds have come against England.
Having Mathews back should ease some of the run-scoring burden, too. The 33-year-old may not contribute much with the ball these days but does average 45.31 with the bat in Tests. He will go into the opening game needing just 19 more runs to reach 6,000 in the format.
KEY OPTA FACTS
- England have won their previous two bilateral Test series against Sri Lanka; they are attempting to record three successive victories against them for the first time.
- Sri Lanka come into the series having only mustered one win in their past seven Test matches (D2 L4); they have just suffered a 2-0 series defeat against the Proteas, losing the opener by an innings margin before slumping to a 10-wicket loss in the second match of the series in South Africa.
- The hosts have only lost once in five Test matches against England at Galle International Stadium (W2 D2). However, the most recent meeting between the sides at the venue was won by the tourists.
- Sri Lanka have managed to get the umpire's decision overturned in 23 per cent of their referrals in Tests since the start of 2019. Only Australia (22 per cent) have a lower rate; England's record stands at 31 per cent across that period.
- Despite making his Test debut in Sri Lanka over 13 years ago, Stuart Broad has only played three Test matches in the country. He has picked up three wickets there (averaging 83), but is six scalps away from going above Courtney Walsh (519) and into sixth in the list of all-time leading Test wicket-takers.
Ali and the rest of the England Test squad were checked at the airport in Hambantota on Sunday after flying in ahead of the two-match series, which gets underway on January 14.
The all-rounder will now observe a 10-day period of self-isolation, while team-mate Chris Woakes will isolate for a minimum of seven days after being deemed a possible close contact.
Further testing of the rest of the party will be carried out on Tuesday, with England's players then due to begin training the following day.
"Ali will now observe a period of 10-days self-isolation, in accordance with the Sri Lanka government's protocol on quarantine," a statement from the ECB read.
"Chris Woakes has been deemed as a possible close contact, and he will observe a period of self-isolation and further testing.
"The touring party will be PCR tested for a second time on Tuesday morning. At this stage, the team will train for the first time on Wednesday."
England selected a 16-man squad for the series in Sri Lanka, though seven reserves were also announced for the trip to help cover for potential absences.
The white-ball tour to South Africa in December was cut short due to a number of COVID-19 cases within the bubble shared by the two teams.
While the three-match Twenty20 series against the Proteas was completed, the one-day games scheduled had to be cancelled.
Knowing defeat in Bengaluru would leave them with one win in five and end any realistic hope of reaching the semi-finals, they batted calamitously and were rounded up in just 33.2 overs of self-inflicted pain.
Ben Stokes top-scored with 43 but even he barely laid a glove on the opposition, looking short of fluency throughout a 73-ball stay. Six players were dismissed in single figures, with Adil Rashid’s comical run out at the non-striker’s end summing up a shoddy performance.
England’s increasingly confusing selection continued as they dropped rising star Harry Brook, leaving them with a conspicuously ageing side comprised entirely of thirtysomethings for the first time ever in one-day cricket.
With up-and-coming seamer Gus Atkinson also benched, Liam Livingstone – who turned 30 in August – was youngest player on the teamsheet and they batted like a side long past their peak.
They now face the embarrassment of being ousted from the tournament they won four years ago by Silverwood, the man who was supposed to lead England in India before being sacked after the Ashes debacle of 2021/22.
Rob Lewis had travelled to Sri Lanka in March 2020 to watch Root's side in action, only for that series to be cancelled at short notice due to the coronavirus pandemic.
However, rather than return home, Lewis opted to stay put, a decision he made in the hope the abandoned series would be completed at a later date.
"I thought, 'Oh, this coronavirus will be a month. I'll stay in for that month and then see what happens'. But it rumbled on... there's never been a point where I thought I should go home," he explained in an interview with The Times.
So, while the Barmy Army were unable to attend in their typically high numbers due to travel restrictions amid the continued global health crisis, there was still one visiting spectator there to witness England's seven-wicket triumph in the first of two Tests on the rearranged trip.
Root had acknowledged Lewis – watching the action unfold from the famous Galle Fort that overlooks the cricket ground – when reaching his double century on day three, and he went one step further after the game had come to a conclusion.
Having completed his media duties, the England skipper put in a phone call to thank Lewis personally, as shown by the team's official Twitter account.
"We really appreciate your support. It's an incredible story and journey that you've been on over the last year or so," Root said during the conversation.
"So, more than anything, I just wanted to say a massive thank you. We really appreciate you being here and making the effort to come down and support us.
"It's a real pleasure for us to be able to enjoy this with you, so thank you very much."
England have now won four successive overseas Tests for the first time since 1957, while Root has posted 24 victories during his captaincy reign, leaving only two behind Michael Vaughan's all-time team record.
Lewis is seemingly set to stick around a little longer for the second match in the series, with the second Test starting on Friday at the same venue.
The tourists claimed a historic victory after winning the decider at Derby by seven wickets, thanks to Chamari Athapaththu’s heroics.
Athapaththu took three wickets for 21 runs as the hosts were bowled out for 116 before hitting 44 to fire her side to victory, which sealed a memorable 2-1 series success.
It meant that England lost a T20 series to a team other than Australia for the first time since 2010, while also losing a first-ever white-ball series to Sri Lanka.
On the back of the Women’s Ashes earlier in the summer, England used the opportunity to try some fresh blood in this series, with the likes of Mahika Gaur and Maia Bouchier given a chance and Lewis called it a “valuable exercise”.
“I learned a lot, a hell of a lot,” he said.
“Without going into specific individuals, I feel like we are on a journey as a team and we are trying to work out how we want to play and the mindset we want to go into each game with and which individuals are capable of doing that.
“You won’t find that out unless you expose them to international cricket.
“The decision-making before the series was very much around giving opportunity to players on the edge of our squad to try and learn about what they are capable of under pressure.
“It is a really valuable exercise for us. Obviously every time we do it we are taking a risk in terms of win-loss but what we are hopeful of is the opportunities we are giving the players will generate brilliant coaching conversations and understanding where every player is at.
“We are a developing team. We have three teenagers playing for us at the moment, which is fantastic. But they will go away from this experience learning what they need to improve their game.”
Captain Athapaththu was the star of her side’s historic triumph and said a series result like this had been coming.
“I am really happy with my performance and my team’s performance,” she said. “The last two tours in Bangladesh and New Zealand, we have played really good cricket and we have carried that on.
“Finally we have won – that is really good. Hopefully we can carry on this form in the ODIs.
“My bowling unit have done a really good job and the last couple of months our bowlers have done really well.”
Dom Sibley finished up unbeaten on 56 as he and Jos Buttler (46 not out) saw the tourists to a target of 164, the pair putting on a pivotal stand worth 75 after coming together with their team wobbling in the run chase.
Lasith Embuldeniya claimed three of the wickets to fall as he finished with match figures of 10-210, but Sri Lanka were left to regret a shoddy batting display that saw them all out for 126 in 35.5 overs.
England added just five runs in the morning before their first innings was wrapped up at 344, meaning Sri Lanka came out to bat again with a useful lead of 37 on a dry, turning pitch.
However, Dom Bess and Jack Leach claimed four wickets apiece, aided by some questionable shot choices, as Sri Lanka lost the plot. They were reeling on 78-8 when debutant Ramesh Mendis was caught behind for 16 - the top score for the hosts at the time.
Embuldeniya made 40 - easily a career-best knock in all formats - thanks to six fours and a solitary six, while the more reserved Suranga Lakmal (11 not out) was happy to hang around. Eventually, Joe Root came on to claim the final two wickets in just 11 deliveries, leaving England chasing 164.
The busy Embuldeniya was soon centre stage again as Sri Lanka chipped away to retain hope, Zak Crawley (13), Jonny Bairstow - who made 28 in a hurry - and Dan Lawrence (2) all falling to the left-arm spinner.
Mendis claimed the prized wicket of Root, bowled off an inside edge trying to play a paddle sweep for 11, but Sibley and Buttler combined to calm any nerves, seeing their team over the finishing line with ease in the end.
The victory means England have won five successive overseas Test matches for the first time since 1914 - they will hope to continue that run when they head to India next.
