England v Sri Lanka: third and deciding men’s one-day cricket international - live
The article reflects on the conclusion of England's cricket summer, highlighting the emergence of a new generation of talented players and the team's overall performance. It looks forward to upcoming international fixtures in Pakistan.
Why it matters
Provides a retrospective analysis of a national sports team's development and future outlook.
And so we reach the end of a long, hot summer. England won every series they played in except one, the three-Test tussle with New Zealand, which went so badly wrong that Ben Stokes resigned as the Test captain and Brendon McCullum was sacked as the Test coach.
Joe Root went from being a great ex-captain, reeling off hundreds, to an unexpected Test captain again, winning every game but unable to reach three figures. Stephen Fleming was appointed Test coach but didn’t actually start, flying over just to say hello and make the right noises.
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