Sri Lanka v England: third men’s cricket one-day international – live
Gone! Rashid lures Hasaranga into a chip which just isn’t timed.Duckett takes the catch as if he’d never dropped one a few minutes ago.41st over: Sri Lanka 263-7 (Rathnayake 94, Hasaranga 9) Hasaranga fancies this.Facing Curran, he plays himself in for two balls, then strokes a gorgeous off-drive on the up for four, folowed by a pull for four more.Eleven off the over!40th over: Sri Lanka 252-7 (Rathnayake 92, Hasaranga 0) Meanwhile Rathnayake motors on into the 90s.
He’s done a Root, but now he needs someone to impersonate Brook.Cometh the hour, cometh Hasaranga?Liam Dawson returns, produces a fine over and finishes it with a wicket as he tempts Wellalage with an arm ball outside off.Wellalage swings but can only sky it and Jacks, at backward point, redeems himself with a calm catch.39th over: Sri Lanka 248-6 (Rathnayake 89, Wellalage 21) Brook takes Rashid off after just one over and goes back to seam.It’s Sam Curran, grunting as he goes, and he does well, restricting the batters to three – and one of those is down to a misfield from Jacks.
The rate required creeps into double figures: 109 needed off 11 overs.They can’t manage that, can they?38th over: Sri Lanka 246-6 (Rathnayake 87, Wellalage 21) Brook persists with Bethell, who’s done pretty well.He nearly does even better as a slog-sweep from Wellalage sails towards Duckett at deep square – but it’s dropped! That’s the first blemish in the field from England today.Wellalage celebrates by hitting the last ball of the over for six over long-off.That’s ten off the over.
37th over: Sri Lanka 236-6 (Rathnayake 86, Wellalage 13) Rashid takes over from Rehan, the master replacing the apprentice,The batters aren’t bothered: they take six singles,SL need 122 from 13 overs at 9,38,36th over: Sri Lanka 230-6 (Rathnayake 83, Wellalage 10) Bethell needs to get through this over without conceding a four, and he does.
That’s drinks, with SL needing another 128 from 84 balls, and Pavan Rathnayake doing his damnedest to stop this being Harry Brook’s finest hour in ODI cricket.35th over: Sri Lanka 225-6 (Rathnayake 79, Wellalage 9) Do Sri Lanka still believe? Pavan Rathnayake does! Facuing Rehan, he thumps a full toss for four, then makes a decent ball into another full toss by coming down the track and belting that for four too.Nine off the over – but that’s what they need every over now, so England remain the favourites.34th over: Sri Lanka 216-6 (Rathnayake 70, Wellalage 9) If Morgan was still in charge, England would have had a slip for all these spinners and maybe a short leg too.Brook, who did well to bring a slip in a while ago, has now taken him out again and it costs him as Jacks twice finds the edge of Dunith Wellalage’s bat.
One nick is stopped by short third, the other sneaks away for four.Seven off the over.33rd over: Sri Lanka 209-6 (Rathnayake 68, Wellalage 4) Another decent over from Rehan, another four singles.The rate required has risen to 8.76, which will be too much for the lower order unless somebody launches a blitz.
32nd over: Sri Lanka 205-6 (Rathnayake 66, Wellalage 2) Will Jacks may not look much of a bowler but he has 2-36 off seven overs today, while England’s other four spinners have 1-97 from 18 overs between them.Another catch in the ring! Dhananjaya’s attempted slog goes straight to midwicket, and Brook has his third catch of the day.He may also have his hands on the Player of the Match award.31st over: Sri Lanka 202-5 (Rathnayake 65, Dhananjaya 9) And here comes England’s fifth spinner, Rehan Ahmed.Like Bethell, he’s an exciting cricketer, and he too starts well – four singles.
At this stage of England’s innings, the score was 166-2 and Harry Brook hadn’t faced a ball.30th over: Sri Lanka 198-5 (Rathnayake 63, Dhananjaya 7) Rashid bowls his seventh over and almost picks up a caught-and-bowled as Rathnayake mistimes a shovel off the back foot, but it’s one of those nasty ones that you have to dive forward for.With 20 overs left, Sri Lanka need 160.The arithmetic is straightforward; the task is not.29th over: Sri Lanka 192-5 (Rathnayake 61, Dhananjaya 4) Bethell offers his first freebie, straying outside off, and Rathnayake helps himself to a cut for four.
Eight off the over, which is just what SL need,According to CricViz, they have a 6pc chance of managing it,28th over: Sri Lanka 185-5 (Rathnayake 55, Dhananjaya 2) Rathnayake, facing Rashid, glances for two to reach a first fine careful fifty in his fourth one-day international,He will have to make at least another fifty and he’s already on the way, adding four more as a thick edge squirts away to third man,27th over: Sri Lanka 177-5 (Rathnayake 48, Dhananjaya 1) Bethell continues and does well again, going for only two.
The rate required is climbing, to 7.86 now, and SL are still not quite halfway there.26th over: Sri Lanka 174-5 (Rathnayake 46, Dhananjaya 0) Another over from Dawson was unfolding with the odd comfortable single and no alarms.And then Liyanage pushed into the off side, set off for a run – and found Rathnayake stopping half-way.Liyanage turned back but he was doomed as Brook just had to send a half-decent throw into Buttler.
Out of nowhere, a calamity for the Sri Lankans!25th over: Sri Lanka 171-4 (Rathnayake 43, Liyanage 19) Brook turns to his fourth spinner.It could be Rehan Ahmed, but instead it’s Jacob Bethell: maybe Brook feels a bit bad about overshadowing his fine 65.Bethell starts well, getting the ball to grip and prompting both batters to mistime it.Only three off the over.24th over: Sri Lanka 168-4 (Rathnayake 43, Liyanage 19) Facing Dawson again, these two do better, taking six off the over.
There’s a minor scare as England review for LBW, but Liyanage got some glove on his attempted sweep and it goes into the book as three more to the batter.Sri Lanka need 190 off 26 overs at 7.3.23rd over: Sri Lanka 162-4 (Rathnayake 42, Liyanage 14) Brook keeps Jacks on.He may be regretting it after the first ball – Rathnayake dancing down the track and cover-driving for four – but Jacks recovers to allow only two singles.
For all the carnage today, there have been hundreds of dot balls.22nd over: Sri Lanka 156-4 (Rathnayake 37, Liyanage 13) Liam Dawson is in the groove now, a sight that Hampshire fans have relished since time immemorial.He finds turn, and some uneven bounce, and goes for just a single off the over.The rate required (7.21) has finally nudged above the rate achieved so far (7.
09).21st over: Sri Lanka 155-4 (Rathnayake 33, Liyanage 12) Brook decides to keep five overs of Rashid up his sleeve.Back comes Jacks and the batters show more intent with their shots – a reverse sweep for two from Liyanage, an orthodox sweep for three from Rathnayake.With their running, they’re more lackadaisical, whereas that three comes about because Dawson busts a gut to get a boot to the ball, just inside the rope at fine leg.And Sri Lanka did drop Brook earlier in the day ….
20th over: Sri Lanka 148-4 (Rathnayake 32, Liyanage 10) Another four off Dawson’s over,Even on a day like this, which has already yielded 500 runs, he dull middle overs refuse to die,19th over: Sri Lanka 144-4 (Rathnayake 31, Liyanage 7) Brook has worked out that it’s all about wickets: as Rashid continues, he brings himself in to slip,But maybe the Sri Lankans have worked out that it’s all about staying there,They work the ball into the gaps and help themselves to four singles, which is good enough against Rashid.
They’ve seen off half his overs now.18th over: Sri Lanka 140-4 (Rathnayake 29, Liyanage 5) Brook decides the time is right to rehabilitate Dawson, who was treated like a seamer by the Sri Lankan top order.He does better now, conceding only four off the over.17th over: Sri Lanka 136-4 (Rathnayake 28, Liyanage 2) Another over from Rashid goes for just three singles.And that’s drinks with England on top, even though the Sri Lankans got off to a wonderful start.
Overton, Curran and Dawson went for 94 off nine overs between them, but Rashid and Jacks have restored order with combined figures of 8-0-42-2.SL need 222 off 33 overs; England need six wickets.16th over: Sri Lanka 133-4 (Rathnayake 27, Liyanage 0) Brook keeps Jacks on, quite reasonably, and he whisks through a nice tight over – five dots and a paddle for two from Rathnayake.But even after this quiet spell, the rate required is still only 6.61.
It’s all about the wickets.15th over: Sri Lanka 131-4 (Rathnayake 25, Liyanage 0) So Rashid strikes, as he always does.And a calm has descended on Colombo after that frantic start.Another promising knock ends with a catch in the ring! It was a poor ball from Rashid, short and straight, and Asalanka, who had just had an escape with a leading edge, couldn’t decide whether to pull it up or down.14th over: Sri Lanka 124-3 (Rathnayake 18, Asalanka 13) Jacks continues, strays down the leg side and Jos Buttler thinks he’s got a stumping, but Rathnayake did well to get his bat down.
As the decision goes upstairs, the on-field umpire forgets to call a wide.Good over, though: just three off it, and Jacks finishes by beating the left-handed Asalanka all ends up.13th over: Sri Lanka 121-3 (Rathnayake 16, Asalanka 12) Rashid, drawing on his immense experience, gets through an over without a boundary.12th over: Sri Lanka 117-3 (Rathnayake 15, Asalanka 9) Brook, like these batters, is nothing if not fearless.He brings back Jacks, a show of faith after that flaky first over.
And it works out quite well – only one run off the first five balls, before Rathnayake finds another of those artful dabs and gets four,Still, in a minor triumph for England, the run rate achieved so far has fallen below ten an over,Rate required: a mere 6,34,All the Sri Lankans have to do to win this now is not to be bowled out.
All England have to do is to take seven wickets.11th over: Sri Lanka 112-3 (Rathnayake 11, Asalanka 8) With the powerplay done, here’s Adil Rashid.The batters are suddenly watchful – but only for two balls.After a couple of dots, Rathnayake plays a deft leg glance for four and Asalanka dabs for two.Eight off the over.
At this stage, England were 45-2.Overton alone has conceded more than that – 48 off his four overs.Almost every bad ball has been punished, the exception being the stinking long hop from Jacks that somehow defeated Mishara.10th over: Sri Lanka 104-3 (Rathnayake 6, Asalanka 5) So, two new batters at the crease: surely SL will go into their shell? It seems not.Charith Asalanka drives his first ball for four, and then Pavan Rathanayake plays a classy dab for four more.
Ten off the over! A ton off the powerplay!But now he’s gone! Befuddled by a slow bouncer from Overton, Nissanka can only chip it to deep midwicket.9th over: Sri Lanka 94-2 (Nissanka 50, Rathnayake 1) Brook reverts to seam at both ends.Not sure about that … Nissanka welcomes Curran back with a pull for six, then cruises to his fifty off only 24 balls.He’s been superb: now he just needs to make a hundred more.8th over: Sri Lanka 85-2 (Nissanka 42, Rathnayake 0) After seeing his spinners go for 32 off three overs, Brook turned back to Overton.
It looked like a blunder as Mendis went berserk with a bludgeon for four, a pull for six and a ramp for four.But then came the breakthrough.Still, Mendis made 20 off nine balls, whereas, at much the same stage of England’s innings, Ben Duckett managed only seven off 17.A goal against the run of play! Mendis plays a loose drive and picks out Brook at mid-off.7th over: Sri Lanka 70-1 (Nissanka 42, Mendis 6) Dawson continues and again gets it wrong with his first ball as Nissanka pulls for four
‘It could be a shoe or a stick’: Sajid Javid on being beaten by his father, petty crime – and turning his life around
As a young teenager, Javid and his brother were caught stealing from slot machines, arrested and held in a cell. His future hung in the balance. How did he get from there to the top of UK politics?In 2019, when Sajid Javid was home secretary, he spoke about growing up on “the most dangerous street in Britain” and said how easy it would have been to fall into a life of crime. Fortunately, he said, he managed to avoid trouble. But it turns out that Javid was being a little economical with the truth
Burnham will try again for Westminster return but declines offer of seat in 2027
Andy Burnham has not given up hopes of returning to Westminster and will try again, allies say, but would need to be convinced that Keir Starmer would not try to block him again before running.The Greater Manchester mayor’s hopes of an imminent return to parliament appeared remote, however, as No 10 sources suggested that relations between the two men were at a low ebb and played down chances of a rapprochement.As the leadership tried to defuse the anger, Starmer himself defended the decision to prevent Burnham running in the Gorton and Denton byelection next month, a move that triggered a backlash against the prime minister from sections of his own party.Starmer is understood to have offered to support Burnham running for another seat in the north-west of England in 2027, nearer the end of his mayoralty, by which time the voting system would have changed in Labour’s favour and the party would be able to line up a strong replacement.However, the proposal was not accepted and the prime minister’s allies have since suggested that Burnham’s publicly angry response to being blocked may mean that even a tentative deal will not come to pass
Tories criticised over claim Braverman defected to Reform after ‘mental health’ issues
The Conservatives are facing a backlash after claiming that Suella Braverman defected to Reform UK after “mental health” issues, as the former home secretary finally joined Nigel Farage’s party after months of denials.Braverman, who was sacked from the cabinet by both Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, became the third sitting Conservative MP to defect in little over a week. She immediately went on the attack against her former party.At a press conference after her defection, Braverman said she had felt “politically homeless” for the last two years and that too many Tory promises to the country – including on Brexit and immigration – “lie in tatters”.Her critics immediately pointed out that as Brexit minister, home secretary and attorney general under the Tories she had played a major role in the success, or otherwise, of those policy areas
Greens launch major push for Gorton and Denton after Burnham blocked
The Greens are set to stage an all-out fight to win the upcoming Gorton and Denton byelection, with officials in the party arguing they have a real chance of victory after Andy Burnham was barred from applying to be the Labour candidate.The Greens came third in the seat in the general election, nearly 14,000 votes behind Andrew Gwynne, the sitting MP who stepped down last week. But they plan to flood the constituency with activists in the hope of persuading locals they are the party more likely to defeat Reform UK.While it is up to the local Greens to decide a candidate, it is expected that they could field Hannah Spencer, leader of the Green group on Trafford council, who stood against Burnham in the 2024 Greater Manchester mayoral election.Defeat to the Greens, or a sufficiently high Green vote to allow a Reform win, would be a major blow to Keir Starmer, as well as significant embarrassment after he moved to ensure Burnham, the Greater Manchester mayor, could not stand
Tories withdraw ‘mental health’ briefing about Suella Braverman after former Tory home secretary joins Reform – UK politics live
Suella Braverman has defected to Reform UK, the third sitting Conservative MP to join Nigel Farage’s party in little more than a week.Keir Starmer has defended Labour’s decision to block Andy Burnham from standing for parliament, a move which has triggered a major backlash against the prime minister from sections of his own party.Reform UK would slash what it calls “highly dubious” environmental protection measures to help fund a £2bn cut to income tax in Scotland if it won May’s Holyrood elections, the party has said.Jenny Chapman, the development minister, has is drawing up plans to scrap the UK’s aid watchdog, prompting concerns that the government is attempting to escape scrutiny while implementing “brutal” cuts.For a full list of all the stories covered on the blog today, do scroll through the list of key event headlines near the top of the blog
Tories say mental health claim about Suella Braverman was ‘sent out in error’
The Conservatives have withdrawn a claim that Suella Braverman’s defection to Reform UK on Monday was connected to her mental health after criticism from across the political spectrum.Earlier, in an official statement it now says was “sent out in error”, the party said: “It was always a matter of when, not if, Suella would defect. The Conservatives did all we could to look after Suella’s mental health, but she was clearly very unhappy.”The statement was shared with journalists by a Conservative party spokesperson and swiftly condemned by MPs, peers and mental health charities for its brutality and indiscretion, as well as for trivialising and weaponising mental health struggles.Speaking to GB News after the statement was released, Nigel Evans, a former Conservative MP, said it was an “absolute disgrace” and “completely underhand”
Australian Open 2026 quarter-finals: Alcaraz hammers De Minaur, Svitolina destroys Gauff – as it happened
The Breakdown | So much at stake and Six Nations just the start in ‘massive year for rugby union’
The Joy of Six: unlikely Winter Olympics stars
Zverev survives Tien challenge, Sabalenka through to semis – as it happened
Australian Open insulates tennis from extreme heat but still faces million-dollar hit
Shedeur Sanders set to better father Deion by reportedly making Pro Bowl as rookie