England vs Sri Lanka: Alastair Cook absent with knee injury as lead fails to paper over cracks in top order

England 416 & 109-4, Sri Lanka 288 all out: England lead by 237 heading into day four but Cook failed to bat after going to hospital for an X-ray

England were left fretting over the fitness of captain Alastair Cook and the form of several of their top six despite finishing an entertaining third day of this final Test against Sri Lanka at Lord’s in a strong position.

Closing on 109 for four in their second innings, Cook’s side hold a lead of 237 and should be confident of pushing for the win over the final two days here that would hand them a 3-0 series whitewash.

However, victory would not paper over the gaping cracks in the top six that are threatening to undermine England’s long-term progress.

Things were not helped by Cook’s injury, England’s captain sustaining bad bruising to his left knee after being hit fielding at silly point by Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera shortly before lunch.

Cook failed to return to the field or bat in England’s second innings after heading to hospital for a precautionary scan, which at least confirmed there was no fracture.

Cook was absent from England's top order as he had an x-ray on his left knee (Getty)

But while Cook was made temporarily lame by his stroke of misfortune, Nick Compton just looks like a lame duck in international terms after his latest failure which surely signals the end of his Test career.

Compton came into this match under severe pressure, needing a score to save his position at No3, and after being dismissed for one in the first innings he made just 19 as a makeshift opener second time around before edging Shaminda Eranga behind.

With just 51 runs to his name in this series against an attack who are one of the weaker in world cricket given the injuries to Sri Lanka’s bowlers, Compton has failed and cannot survive for the second series of the summer against Pakistan.

Alex Hales ended day three on 41 not-out (Getty)

Yet there are also concerns over James Vince, whose dismissal for a first-ball duck today saw England slip to 50 for three in their second innings and the Hampshire batsman return just 54 runs across three Tests from No5 in his debut series.

Before this series began it was thought Vince could move up to three to replace Compton at some stage. Yet that seems unlikely given his poor form against the Sri Lankans. After all, there’s no point in asking him to run before he can walk.

Joe Root also failed again, the Yorkshireman’s golden run of form coming to an end in this Test as he followed up his first-innings score of three with just four as he was bowled by a Nuwan Pradeep delivery that kept devilishly low.

Pradeep found himself on a hat-trick when Vince shouldered arms to a ball that cannoned into off-stump.

England, with three wickets lost in 10 balls, only had a lead of 178 at that stage.

Jonny Bairstow is bowled by Nuwan Pradeep on day three (Getty)

Yet Jonny Bairstow put on a stand of 51 with opener Alex Hales, before the first-innings centurion was bowled by the excellent Pradeep for 32 shortly before the close.

Sri Lanka had started the day in the relatively strong position of 162 for one following a decent fightback the previous afternoon.

The tourists, though, were still trailing by 254 runs and it meant England’s bowlers had a chance of seizing the initiative if they could work their magic on a flat Lord’s pitch.

Overhead conditions certainly offered James Anderson and company some assistance but England’s quartet of seamers bowled brilliantly to take five wickets at the cost of just 56 runs in an action-packed morning session.

Cook must be given credit for deciding to turn to Chris Woakes first up rather than Anderson and the Warwickshire man repaid his captain’s faith by trapping Kusal Mendis lbw with his first delivery of the day.

Sri Lanka were 169 for four by the time Woakes picked up his second wicket, visiting captain Angelo Mathews edging to Root at second slip, after Stuart Broad had Kaushal Silva caught behind.

Steven Finn, who has been in patchy form so far in this series, then got involved, removing Dinesh Chandimal lbw and Lahiru Thirimanne, Root the catcher again at second slip, as the tourists limped into lunch on 218 for six, still trailing by 198.

Anderson celebrates taking Lakmal's wicket (Getty)

A 71-run stand between Rangana Herath and Kusal Perera, back in the team following an erroneous drugs ban, frustrated England’s bowlers either side of the interval and not even the introduction of the second new ball initially separated Sri Lanka’s seventh-wicket pair.

However, Broad, in the 14th over after lunch, finally broke the deadlock as Herath chopped on to his own stumps, his team’s score now 276 for seven.

Sri Lanka only added 12 more runs to that total as Anderson removed Perera, pulling behind on 42, and Suranga Lakmal, edging into the slip cordon, before Woakes wrapped up the innings with the wicket of Shaminda Eranga.

With a first-innings lead of 128, England were in a match-winning position with or without Cook in this second innings.

And despite the initial wobbles as Compton, Root and Vince fell, the home side will be happy with where they are in this heading into the final two days.