A summer of renewal for England’s Test team brought five straight wins, two series victories and, looking ahead, some new faces. It also ended with a sloppy defeat to Sri Lanka at the Oval, the tourists led to a deserved first victory on English soil in 10 years by a superb unbeaten 127 from Pathum Nissanka.

England went into the fourth day hoping to pose a threat, as they had collapsed on the decisive third day. Nine wickets were needed, 125 runs to defend, a perfect home season was the aim; it was a grey Monday, well into the end of the season, and the crowds were sparse, but there was no reason not to give it their all.

But there was only one twist on the day, as Shoaib Bashir plunged into the deep at full speed to remove Kusal Mendis and reward Gus Atkinson’s determination to overcome a hamstring pull and carry on bowling. Otherwise it was child’s play, Nissanka stifling the previous evening’s quick half-century a little, reaching his second Test century off 107 balls and then coming back at 13:03 to cut Bashir his 13th four and seal an eight-wicket victory.

It was fitting that Angelo Mathews was there with him at the end, 32 not out. The 37-year-old Mathews, the catalyst for his side’s 1-0 series win here in 2014, provided a fairly clinical winning run with a second calm header. England’s attack was simply unable to generate the same movement that had derailed their own batters 24 hours earlier, and this Sri Lankan victory was largely down to the efforts of their seamers.

A 2-1 series win for England, then, and perhaps a useful reminder that a drop in intensity can be costly. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, could easily have felt beaten after a disjointed first day and again after conceding a 62-run deficit in the first innings. Instead, the tourists gave it their all, stayed serious and found a way to turn this Test match around, with Vishwa Fernando’s substitutions of Joe Root and Harry Brook in the third innings providing the spark for that fire.

There was no doubt, however, which way the Man of the Match would go: Nissanka, who did not start the series, managed 191 runs in the two innings, suggesting that a player who scored his maiden Test century on his debut three years ago is more than just the ODI star he has developed into in the meantime.

Compact, orthodox and skilful enough to score his runs quickly, the 26-year-old could well become a fans’ favourite in this format. He certainly was on the day, as the 25.3 overs it took him to catch up with the rest of the target meant a 50% refund for ticket holders.