Simon Burnton's match report
Related: England thrash Sri Lanka following brilliant Harry Brook century
Righto, that’s it from me this evening. The sides head to Cardiff for the next match in this three match T20I series on Thursday. Join us for that and thanks for your company, bye!
Updated
Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka:
It was a tough day for us. We missed our plans and execution. Positives-wise? Didn’t have anything for me.”
Harry Brook (114* off 49) is Player of the Match:
It was an exceptional performance and I’m really proud of how the lads did in every facet tonight. Sonny Baker deserved his chance tonight and he bowled three overs in the powerplay for just eight runs. He did really well.
We have spoken about running more twos and there were 22 twos in our innings which I’m pleased about.
I thought the performance tonight was near perfect.”
Sri Lanka 135 all out (England win by 119 runs)
Chameera clears the front leg and smears Liam Dawson for SIX after Adil Rashid advised his fellow spinner to toss one up above the eyeline… Rashid has a chuckle afterwards. ‘Sorry mate’.
Bowled! Dawson cleans Chameera up with the next ball to cap a thumping victory for England.
18th over: Sri Lanka 129-9 (Chameera 2 , Malinga 13) Malinga! Sri Lanka’s last man shows the others how to do it – he charges Will Jacks and dispatches for SIX over the leg side. On we go.
17th over: Sri Lanka 118-9 (Chameera 0, Malinga 4) Eshan Malinga is Sri Lanka’s last man. He edges Overton for four to finish the over. Sri Lanka only need 137 runs from 18 balls. Ahem.
WICKET! Dunith Wellalage c Cox b Overton 33 (Sri Lanka 114-9)
Excellent catch by Jordan Cox at deep third! Wellalage’s entertaining but futile cameo comes to an end.
16th over: Sri Lanka 107-8 (Wellalage 27, Chameera 0) Rashid returns with England needing two wickets to go 1-0 up in the series. Wellalage is going down swinging though, he clubs two fours through the leg side.
15th over: Sri Lanka 95-7 (Wellalage 18, Theekshana 2) Baker finishes with 3-12 from his four overs. “It’s been the three Bs” says Nasser Hussain on commentary, “Buttler, Brook and Baker”.
WICKET! Maheesh Theekshana b Baker 4 (Sri Lanka 97-8)
Sonny Baker returns for his final over, three dots followed by a compact drive for two by Theekshana… BOWLED HIM! Baker hits the off stump like a freight train! He celebrates with arms outstretched, that’s his third of the night.
14th over: Sri Lanka 95-7 (Wellalage 18, Theekshana 2) Overton is pumped down the ground for four by Wellalage. The next ball sees Jos Buttler nearly cling on to a sharp chance off the cue end after being completely wrongfooted by Wellalage’s aborted ramp shot. Overton has 1-9 off his two overs.
Updated
13th over: Sri Lanka 88-7 (Wellalage 13, Theekshana 1) Tongue has his figures blotted a little by Wellalage, two sixes smeared off his final over sees him finish with 1-25 off his four. Wellalage spotted the slower ball and pinged it over the leg side before latching onto a full paced delivery wise of off stump and cutting it over the fence.
Updated
12th over: Sri Lanka 76-7 (Wellalage 1, Theekshana 0) Just two runs and the wicket from Overton’s first. Tongue is back to bowl out.
Updated
WICKET! Wanindu Hasaranga b Overton 4 (Sri Lanka 76-7)
Overton foxes Hasaranga with a slower ball and the stumps go splat. This is a proper mauling by England.
Updated
11th over: Sri Lanka 71-5 (Hasaranga 3, Wellalage 0) Wellalage joins Hasaranga in the middle. The former’s name reminds me of the brand of questionable luminous hair gel I wore to spike my teenage barnet. Anyone? Anyway, here’s Jamie Overton.
Updated
WICKET! Kamindu Mendis c Brook b Tongue 2 (Sri Lanka 74-6)
Captain Brook clings on to a skier!
Updated
We don’t really link to the socials anymore but Ben Stokes has just typed out one of his specials on the website formerly known as Twitter:
I don’t even think the genius of KP could come close to what Harry Brook has talent-wise.
Is it really that hard to just sit back and admire these players for what they are, on the good days and the bad days, and stop berating them for doing things that we would never, ever, ever even think of doing because we simply aren’t on their level to think that way?
You are an absolute freak, Harry.
You’re mint to watch. 💪🔥”
10th over: Sri Lanka 71-5 (Mendis 2, Hasaranga 2) Hasaranga joins Mendis and works for two to finish Rashid’s over. Josh Tongue is coming back for his third over.
Updated
WICKET! Dasun Shanaka c Buttler b Rashid 24 (Sri Lanka 57-5)
Rashid wins the war against Shanaka! He gets wiped for consecutive sixes but then responds with a beauty that takes a feather of an edge through to Buttler.
9th over: Sri Lanka 56-4 (Shanaka 12, Mendis 1) Kamindu Mendis arrives in the middle and pats two dots back to Dawson. Have a word. Dawson nearly pins Shanaka a few balls later but an inside edge saves the batter. Close! Dawson dives for a return catch and gets a finger on it but can’t cling on. Has to go down as a drop but the non striker got in his way a little.
Updated
WICKET! Charith Asalanka c Banton b Dawson 10 (Sri Lanka 52-4)
Asalanka tries to go big but can’t beat Banton on the fence at cow corner.
Updated
8th over: Sri Lanka 51-3 (Asalanka 10, Shanaka 10) Rashid twirls his golden web. Flight and spin mixed in with the one that skids on. No boundaries for Sri Lanka who now need 17 actual runs per over for the rest of the innings. Not happening.
Updated
7th over: Sri Lanka 44-3 (Asalanka 6, Shanaka 7) Twelve runs off Liam Dawson’s over but Sri Lanka have already faced as many dots (22) in six overs as England did in their entire innings. Problems. Here comes Adil Rashid for England. More problems.
6th over: Sri Lanka 32-3 (Asalanka 1, Shanaka 0) Shanaka is the new man. Sonny Baker has 2-9 off three overs. Here comes Liam Dawson.
WICKET! Lahiru Udara c Rashid b Baker 5 (Sri Lanka 32-3)
That was Baker’s first white ball international wicket, he’s felt the burn of the bat early on in his career and so no wonder he celebrated with relish. Just like that… he has two! Udara tries to scoop but doesn’t get enough on it, Rashid takes the tumbling catch behind square.
Updated
WICKET! Kamil Mishara b Baker 10 (Sri Lanka 31-2)
Full, straight, fast. Out. Sonny Baker touches 90mph and makes a mess of Mishara’s middle peg.
Updated
5th over: Sri Lanka 31-1 (Mishara 10, Udara 5) DROP! Will Jacks spills Mishara at square leg with Buttler converging on him with the gloves enough to put him off. Tongue turns away ruefully, his well disguised slower ball should have bagged him a wicket.
4th over: Sri Lanka 25-1 (Mishara 9, Udara 1) Mishara slaps Jacks for four after Lahiru Udara joins him in the middle with a flip of a lot to do.
WICKET! Pathum Nissanka c Overton b Jacks 12
Will Jacks gets an early bowl and gets the breakthrough with his fourth ball! Nissanka can’t clear the large form of Overton at mid on.
Updated
3rd over: Sri Lanka 15-0 (Nissanka 8, Mishara 4) Sri Lanka face seven dots in a row before Nissanka finally gets hold of one and clips off his hip elegantly for SIX. They need plenty more where that came from!
2nd over: Sri Lanka 6-0 (Nissanka 1, Mishara 3) Josh Tongue is straight into the action after his stacked Test summer. Mishara is swinging like the proverbial rusty gate but can’t connect, dot balls are killing the visitors already.
1st over: Sri Lanka 1-0 (Nissanka 0, Mishara 0) Excellent first over from the bustling Sonny Baker. Plenty of movement on offer, he zips it in and moves it away late. Only a leg bye off his first over, the run rate up at thirteens already.
No time to catch our breath as Sonny Baker comes out to bowl the first over for England. What can Sri Lanka do in reply?
England make 254-4
Pace off deliveries from Malinga stick in the pitch and are significantly harder to hit, England will be making a note of that for their stint with the ball. Jacks is caught in the deep off the final ball of the innings but Harry Brook is unbeaten on 114 from 49 balls. He strides off with a smile and a glint in his eye. Southampton has been scorched by the England captain.
Updated
19th over: England 247-3 (Brook 112, Jacks 16) Brook and Jacks are unstoppable! 17 off the penultimate over, a Jacks SIX over long on and two castanet wristed fours from Brook. One over to go and Sri Lanka have chased so much leather they are behind on the clock and have to bring another man inside the ring for the last over. Problems, problems.
18th over: England 230-3 (Brook 103, Jacks 9) Jacks gets his KP on and flamingo flicks over long on for SIX! A single brings Brook on strike, he collects two out to deep point to move to 99… Malinga tries a bouncer but it is too high and called wide…
There it is! A clip for two sees Harry Brook bring up a majestic 42 ball hundred!
Updated
17th over: England 216-3 (Brook 97, Jacks 2) Harry Brook moves into the 90s with a glide past point for four and a whip over midwicket for SIX! Some sharp running and a couple of wides makes it 19 runs off the over. Brook is one shot away…
Updated
16th over: England 197-3 (Brook 82, Jacks 1) Will Jacks is sent in with free reign but Chameera gets out of the over for just six runs and the wicket. That’s only the third boundary-less over from England.
Updated
WICKET! Tom Banton c Shanaka b Chameera 10 (England 195-3)
Banton sends one right down long on’s throat.
15th over: England 191-2 (Brook 81, Banton 6) Shanaka nearly gets out of his over for just five runs but a leg side wide sees him having to bowl an extra ball. Brook duly blams it down the ground to move into the 8os. Five overs to go, hold onto your hats.
14th over: England 181-2 (Brook 76, Banton 2) Brook carves Wellalage off the back foot for four and then picks up two twos into the deep. Much too short from the bowler and Brook doesn’t miss out, pulling with disdain for SIX to make it sixteen runs off the over. England are on for a 250 plus score.
13th over: England 165-2 (Brook 61, Banton 1) Tom Banton joins Brook in the middle. He reverse sweeps his third ball for a single to get off the mark. A misfield on the boundary then gifts Brook four, Wellalage the guilty party on the fence at point. Six runs and the wicket of Buttler off the over.
Updated
WICKET! Jos Buttler c Wellalage b Hasaranga 80 (England 159-2)
Stop press! Buttler doesn’t middle one and is caught in the deep on the off side. He misses out on a ton but looked in fine fettle.
Updated
12th over: England 159-1 (Buttler 80, Brook 56) Dasun Shanaka introduced, Sri Lanka need his wiles with the ball. Gah, he drops short and is spanked square for SIX by Buttler. Brook flat bats the final ball for four to make it 13 off the over.
11th over: England 145-1 (Buttler 72, Brook 51) Hasaranga into his third over, he’s been Sri Lanka’s best bowler thus far… spoke too soon. Buttler crunches SIX down the ground. A single brings Brook on strike. He hurries for two to bring up a 20 ball fifty! Sun setting in Southampton but Buttler and Brook blazing.
Updated
England’s third highest halfway T20I score then. What can they blitz from here?
10th over: England 134-1 (Buttler 65, Brook 47) Shot! Buttler showcases those liquid wrists to laser a Chameera yorker for four. The next ball is bunted down the ground for four more. Incredible hitting.
9th over: England 120-1 (Buttler 56, Brook 46) Buttler reaches a 29 ball half century and he’s been the tortoise to Brook’s hare! Only Warner and Kohli have more T20I fifties than England’s white ball batting GOAT. Hasaranga gets his side some respite with just seven off the over.
Updated
8th over: England 113-1 (Buttler 48, Brook 43) Buttler nails a reverse sweep for four off Theekshana. Shoulder shimmy in full flow now and a full ball is sent over the ropes for another SIX. DROP! Buttler carves down the ground and is spilled, the batters come back for two and there’s very nearly a run out too! It’s all happening but Buttler survives.
7th over: England 100-1 (Buttler 35, Brook 43) Wrist spin from Hasaranga now. He does well to contain the scoring with his bag of tricks, four off the over with one ball to go… SIX! Brook clatters the final ball miles over long on. Too short and marmalised. Brutal.
Updated
6th over: England 90-1 (Buttler 32, Brook 36) Phew. Buttler clips two twos and everyone gets their breath back a little after that Brook carnage. A single brings England’s captain back on strike. Four leg byes, poor ball from Malinga. That’s the fifty partnership off 21 balls. Yikes. Malinga is given a rough call by the umpire, his yorker was inside the tramline but given wide. The next is a wide down leg – Sri Lanka’s bowlers do not know where to bowl to Brook at the moment. A decent yorker is timed into the deep for a single. The final ball of the PowerPlay is clipped for four by Buttler.
18 runs off the over, that’s England’s second highest PowerPlay total in T20I cricket. Decent start, lads. The KP bounce?
5th over: England 72-1 (Buttler 23, Brook 35) HarryBrook leans back and carts Wellalage over long on for SIX. The next ball is clattered down the ground for a laser guided four and same for the next.
SIX! Amazing batting from Brook who scoops behind square for a big one. There’s a panic meeting between bowler and captain… it doesn’t help… Brook sends the next straight down the ground for SIX more! Four off the final ball makes it 30 off the over, all from the red hot blade of Harry Brook.
Updated
4th over: England 42-1 (Buttler 23, Brook 5) Eshan Malinga (no relation) starts brilliantly, the fast bowler mixes his pace and length every ball and gets out of the over for just six runs.
Updated
3rd over: England 36-1 (Buttler 21, Brook 2) Harry Brook walks out to the middle with his slightly splay footed simian stroll. Quick singles exchanged with Buttler make it five runs and the wicket off Wellalage’s first over. The pitch is flat and the outfield rapid.
Aneurin Donald c Shanaka b Wellalage 12 (England 31-1)
Gone! Nye Donald perishes with a toe ender that is well caught at mid off. His dayboo with the bat is over but his strikerate is still a nosebleed inducing 240.
Updated
2nd over: England 31-0 (Buttler 18, Donald 12) Chameera with his sling pace from the other end. Buttler blams him through cover for four and then cracks his wrists on the follow up for four more down the ground. The camera zooms in on KP and BM having a good old giggle on the balcony. The Honeymoon period in full swing. Buttler carves the third consecutive four… make that four. Boundaries on both sides of the wicket being peppered.
1st over: England 15-0 (Buttler 2, Donald 12) Theekshana opens up with the ball for Sri Lanka. Buttler nudges into the leg side to get a single off the first ball and bring Donald on strike. The Derbyshire man gets his first runs in international cricket with a confident sweep for two. The next ball is fuller and quicker, angled into Donald’s front pad – Sri Lanka send it upstairs for a review but it hit the debutant outside the line.
SIX! Donald wipes his third ball for a big one over midwicket and follows up with a Harry Brook esque dance down the pitch and carve through cover for four. This is why they picked him!
Updated
Here come the players, Sri Lanka huddle in dark blue and yellow. England are in red tops with blue trews. Aneurin Donald comes out with Jos Buttler, what a moment for the 29 year old. Let’s play!
Updated
Sri Lanka XI: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Lahiru Udara, Charith Asalanka (c), Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga
It’s a spin heavy attack for the visitors who are trying to tip the scales back to winning ways since losing ten of their 15 T20I matches so far this year.
Sri Lanka win the toss and choose to bowl first
It’s a beautiful late summer evening at the Utilita and the coin falls the way of Sri Lankan captain Charith Asalanka. He decides to chase, in modern parlance. Harry Brook then says he would have batted first anyway, so there.
Who is Aneurin Donald and why is he playing for England? This video explainer from Yas Rana has got you covered.
England have announced their XI already.
They are without Phil Salt, Jacob Bethell and Sam Curran for fitness reasons and Jofra Archer is rested after the Test summer. Brydon Carse is on the naughty step for the forseeable.
In their absence, Jordan Cox plays his first T20I since October 2025 and Aneurin Donald - the Glamorgan raised Derbyshire batter who scored 31 off eight balls for the Lions against Sri Lanka last week - will make his debut as opener.
“He’s a cricketer who has been on our radar for a long time,” McCullum said of Donald in the pre game presser. “He’s got a game where he can go from ball one. He’s got raw power, an incredible amount of talent.”
England XI
Aneurin Donald, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Tom Banton, Jordan Cox, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Josh Tongue, Sonny Baker, Adil Rashid
Preamble
You thought the International cricketing summer was over eh? Not a chance. Fling off that chunky fisherman knitted pullover, step away from the soup pan and cease and desist spinning the Nick Drake vinyl. Autumn isn’t quite upon us yet.
Hello and welcome the first T20I between England and Sri Lanka from Southampton. Six whiteball matches inside the next two weeks means Harry Brook and Brendon McCullum can resume their whiteball bromance. There is even a third bro invited into the mix for the next year, just to keep things spicy, doubt you’ll have heard of him though…
Related: Pietersen’s England return is just pure content at a time when cricket needs it | Barney Ronay
Play starts on the south coast at 6.30pm. Drop me a line if you are tuning in. Let’s get into it.
