Key events
9th over: Sri Lanka 75-6 (Asalanka 12, Mendis 0) Brook was behind that dismissal, instructing Oberton not to bowl full, thereby inciting the batter to take him on down the ground. He did, but he couldn’t.
WICKET! Nissanka c Brook b Overton 37 (Sri Lanka 75-3)
Already, and after a decent start, you fear for Sri Lanka. Another cross-seamer is flung into the turf and, when it sits up, Nissanaka is on it too early, cross-batting tamely to Brook at mid-on.
9th over: Sri Lanka 75-2 (Nisskanka 37, Asalanka 12) Overton continues and Asalanka yanks him for one to deep backward square; four more singles follow and, in comms, Nasser chastises the batters for overhitting instead of using the pace, while Sanga praises the cross-seam bowling.
8th over: Sri Lanka 70-2 (Nisskanka 35, Asalanka 9) Teams often leave out spinners at this venue but Dawson has already justified his inclusion and he continues well ceding four ones from four balls. But, under pressure to score, Asalanka backs away then drills four through cover, saving the over which is completed with a further single.
7th over: Sri Lanka 61-2 (Nisskanka 32, Asalanka 2) Overton into the attack and beginning with a dot and a wide, then Nissanka knocks to mid-on and runs, Brook missing with his shy. Banton then does well to save a singe in the covers, then three singles close out a decent Overton over, five from it. England have applied the brakes.
6th over: Sri Lanka 56-2 (Nisskanka 31, Asalanka 0) Asalanka knocks the hat-trick ball into the on side, then wears the final delivery of a brilliant over on the pad. One run, two wickets, and England really needed that to close ou the powerplay.
WICKET! Mishara c&b Dawson 0 (Sri Lanka 56-2)
Mishara, who swapped places with Udara, gets a golden, looking to go at Dawson and instead tamely delivering a leading edge straight back into his hands. He’s on a hatty…
WICKET! Udara c Overton b Dawson 21 (Sri Lanka 56-1)
Udara goes over the top of mid-on but doesn’t get enough of it, Overton timing his jump perfectly, floating up like a lumbering salmon to claim a two-hander above his head. Terrific grab and one England needed badly.
6th over: Sri Lanka 56-0 (Nisskanka 31, Udara 21) Brook tries the experience of Dawson to stem the flow; his first two balls yield one.
5th over: Sri Lanka 55-0 (Nisskanka 30, Udara 21) Jacks replaces Baker and immediately, Nissanka takes advantage of those aforementioned straight boundaries, tickling him back over his heed for six. Two through mid-on follow, then it’s down on one knee to haul a sweep to the fence at fine leg; pressure on the bowler, who gets away with a dog next up, Nissanka opting to force down the ground for one, rather than get greedy and mete out the treatment it deserves. Udara, though, brooks no such nicety, fetching a slog-sweep from outside off and adding four over midwicket. That’s 17 off the over and Sri Lanka are flying.
4th over: Sri Lanka 38-0 (Nisskanka 17, Udara 17) One off the first two deliveries of Archer’s second over, then he extracts decent bounce, Udara missing his heave. So the bowler charges in again … only for an inside-edge to race away for four then, following another dot, a whack over midwicket adds four more. Nine off the over, meaning 23 off Archer’s first two, and this is good from the Lankans.
3rd over: Sri Lanka 29-0 (Nisskanka 16, Udara 9) Udara is struggling to pick the swing, heaving at one he thought would shape in but moves away. The next delivery is worn on the pad but was going down, then proper leg-side muck hits the pad and runs away for four. So Baker goes short … and Udara waits for it, helping it around the corner via pull for four more, before ending another good over, 12 off it, with a square-drive to the fence. This is now a decent start.
2nd over: Sri Lanka 17-0 (Nisskanka 16, Udara 1) Archer, playing his 50th T20i, opens from t’other end, and after a full inswinging dot, Nissanka has a hoik, gloving around the corner fine for four. Next ball, though, a much better shot, pronging down the track to clout four more through backward point. A single follows, the Udara backs away and slices another behind square, then Nissanka wanders over towards off, goes down on one knee, and flips a third four over his shoulder. Faourteen off the over, and Sri Lanka are in business.
1st over: Sri Lanka 3-0 (Nisskanka 3, Udara 0) The Lankans are under pressure here; how do they set a competitive total without taking the kind of risks that could see them skittled? Nissanka turns Baker’s loosener into the on side for two, then opens the face to earn one. The third ball bounces a bit more, hitting the back pad, then a leading edge – Baker, having bowled inswing, changes to outswing And foxes Udara – narrowly eludes the bowler’s dive on the follow-through. That’s a good opening over, just three from it.
Baker has the cherry. Will he put it on top of a pie?
Out come our teams…
Also going on:
Aneurin Donald, who on Tuesday became the first Glamorgan player to represent England in 20 years, fulfils another ambition tonight, playing on his home ground. At 29, he sounds pretty sensible and reflective – he understands what’s happeing to him, telling Eoin Morgan his parents were more emotional than he was an his mates are already asking him for stash.
He plays a relatively unique way, he says – we’ll forgive him the tautology – but at the minute, he feels the harder he swings, the better he gets. After a run of serious injuries, he realised that he was always pretty good at the see ball, hit ball philosophy – a phrase beloved of Kevin Pietersen, who inspired him in 2005 and presented him with his cap – and all his family and friends are in to see him. Imagine what a feeling that must be, oof madone
It’s stopped raining, the square now uncovered. We’ll start on time at half past the hour.
The square is covered. Hopefully not for long.
Tim Southee, England bowling coach, says Brook’s a pleasure to watch but the other guys are also doing well.
On Sonny Baker, he says he was really good the other night and will grow following his performance. He’s got good pace, good change of pace and a good yorker, but what was most impressive was his control. He’s a very skilful bowler with a great attitude,
He turns up every training and game-day with a smile on his face, eager to improve, and he’s a pleasure to have around.
There’s lots of talent in the country and they’re trying to develop different skills and players, namechecking Henry Crocombe, who might get a go in the ODIs and, er, then my daughter knocks at the door having failed to take her key, again, so I miss the rest.
Teams
England: 1 Jos Buttler (wk), 2 Aneruin Donald, 3 Harry Brook (capt), 4 Tom Banton, 5 Jordan Cox, 6 Will Jacks, 7 Jamie Overton, 8 Liam Dawson, 9 Jofra Archer, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Sonny Baker.
Sri Lanka: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Lahiru Udana, 3 Kamil Mishara (wk), 4 Kamindu Mendis, 5 Charith Asalanka (capt), 6 Dasun Shanaka, 7 Wanindu Hasaranga, 8 Tharindu Ratnayake, 9 Dilshan Madushanka, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Eshan Malinga.
Brook is 288 not out, in terms of the last time he was dismissed in this format. He’s an absolute joke, good enough to go down as one of the best we’ve ever seen if he keeps focused and working hard.
Er, it’s raining. Hopefully not for long, but it’s coming down more heavily than is optimal.
Asalanka would’ve fielded too and leaves out two spinners, the short straight boundaries at Sophia Gardens the reason why. Dilshan Madushanka comes in for Maheesh Theekshana, while Tharindu Ratnayake, the ambidextrous spinner, replaces Dunith Wellalage.
England win the toss and field
They fancy chasing tonight. Brook says his team are consistent in an inconsistent game and are enjoying it. Him moving to number three was Baz’s call, he says, but he’s enjoying batting in the powerplay, has managed a few out of the middle, and the team now want to take the no 1 in the world spot off India. In terms of the teams, there’s one change, Jofra Archer in for Josh Tongue.
Gosh, but Nasser has on what might be termed a big coat, the first sighting of the winter.
The weather forecast is decent enough, and the toss is imminent.
Last time out:
Also going on:
Preamble
As human beings, we’re conditioned by the world we’ve built to always want more – a sense that sport exacerbates. When we come across brilliance and genius, much as we enjoy it, we also feel as though we own it such, when – in our opinion – it lets us and itself down, we frequently find ourselves castigating the exact stuff that facilitates it.
In some ways this makes perfect sense – with great power comes great responsibility. But in other ways, it makes none whatsoever, our attention focused on an individual pulling their weight while, around them, others, often those sat in the big chairs, do not.
Take Harry Brook, for example, a once-in-a-lifetime cricketer whose wonders in an England shirt compare favourably, not only with his contemporaries, but with anyone ever to have worn it – or any other. Of course he brings some of this on himself – he portrays something of a dufus and doesn’t always make good decisions, especially problematic in a leader. Except in sport, there’s no better leadership than that done from the front, and no one could argue such example is not being set.
Brook’s century on Tuesday evening was as ludicrously destructive as we’ve come to expect from him, yet another knock only he could play. That, though, was then, and, conversely, this is now; he’ll know as well as anyone that expectations have increased, because he inhabits the same world that we do, while also possessing the manic mentality that drives an elite sportsperson. Whatever is expected of him, he expects of himself to incomparable degree; those of us lucky enough to be watching need to remember that the thrill is as much in the anticipation as the execution, taking joy in that which we have, rather than affront at that which we do not.
Let’s see what, he England and Sri Lanka have for us this evening.
Play: 6.30pm BST
