England vs Sri Lanka 1st ODI Full Commentary

We are back for the chase. The umpires are back out in the middle, and the English players are spread out on the field. It will be the pairing of Pathum Nissanka and Kamindu Mendis to open the innings for Sri Lanka. Jofra Archer is ready to steam in with the new ball. Let's play...

... The Run Chase ...

Tailor-made for a subcontinent side? This is the type of surface the Asian teams are used to, or rather were used to until a few years ago. Still, Sri Lanka will feel they have a real chance of taking a 1-0 lead in this ODI series. The first 10 overs will be key, and Pathum Nissanka will be expected to get his side in front, as batting will get difficult once the ball gets a bit old and the slower bowlers come in. England will miss Adil Rashid a lot but will have to make do with what they have got, and early wickets will be key as usual. Stick around as the run chase is about to start in a bit.

Asitha shows his class - Sri Lanka were asked to bowl first on a fairly dry pitch and Asitha Fernando got them a perfect start with a jaffa, bowling out Tom Banton. However, the visitors couldn't capitalize and conceded too many boundaries in the latter part of the first Powerplay. The score was 135/2 when debutant Sachindu Colombage got his maiden wicket, that too of Joe Root, but again the Lankans fumbled for a bit. The real shift came when Harry Brook got out and the likes of Colombage and others pounced again. The debutant also got rid of Jos Buttler as Asitha Fernando showed class by bowling some amazing reverse-swinging yorkers and bowled out the final two batters. Dushmantha Chameera was the most expensive and felt like the least effective, but overall, it was a decent bowling performance.

Captain leads from the front - After an early wicket, Ben Duckett and Joe Root stabilized England's innings, and then raced ahead for a bit as well.  But Duckett fell, and Root had to rebuild alongside Harry Brook, and the duo kept the scoring rate around a run-a-ball. Brook made a handy 67, and Root got out on 44. Then came a period where England lost 4 wickets for 29 runs. Thankfully for them, Will Jacks got himself in and hit a plethora of boundaries at the death to take his side to a very decent total, as the last three wickets fell in a short span of time. Jacks was eventually left stranded on an unbeaten 46 off 47 balls as the reverse swing was too much for the tailenders to deal with.

Old-school ODI cricket vibe - A dry pitch on offer, one used ball in play, and a bit of reverse swing at the death - all the attributes needed to make it a proper contest between bat and ball. Neither team will be completely happy at the halfway stage, but the Lankans have certainly done well to come back as they did.

Josh Tongue is the last batter in for England, but he'll be at the non-striker's end to begin with. Dushmantha Chameera is back on to finish things at the death alongside Asitha Fernando. Also, Sri Lanka have gone past the innings timer, and in comes the penalty. They will be allowed one fewer boundary rider now.

Asitha Fernando (9-0-50-1) returns to the attack.

Jofra Archer walks out to bat next.

Looking ahead to the next battle - That wraps up our coverage of an action-packed opening clash, but the excitement is far from over as Sri Lanka will look to bounce back and level the series. Make sure to tune in for the 2nd ODI of this series, scheduled to be played at 11.30 am GMT on Thursday, 24th September. Until then, thank you for joining us, and cheers for now!

Skipper of England - Harry Brook starts by saying that the surface wasn't the easiest one, and says that lately they have done well to adapt to surfaces. Feels that they looked at getting to 280 with the start they got, but scraped to 260, which was still good. Brook then lauds Will Jacks for his all-round effort. He then calls Jamie Overton another fantastic white ball cricketer. On Rehan Ahmed, Brook says that he actually did well and did what was asked of him, and was a bit unlucky to get some tap towards the end.

Skipper of Sri Lanka -  Kusal Mendis, on where they lost that game, says he thinks the bowlers did really well in the first innings and the middle order struggled while batting and Pathum Nissanka batted really well and so did Dunith Wellalage and he thinks they have to create something special in the middle order. On whether 265 was par on this pitch, he says he thinks their bowlers did really well, that is why they scored 265, and it was a good score for their batters to chase on this wicket. On their over rate, he says they have to do it better sometime while bowling the second innings and they have to bowl on time and if the game gets tight they have to ensure five fielders are outside the ring and they have to be quicker. On whether they could have been a little more attacking earlier on, he says, yeah, a little bit, as Pathum batted really well and they need to hit more boundaries. On Sachindu Colombage, he says he bowled really well, controlled the game and batted positively later and he is very happy with him.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - Will Jacks wins the award for his all-round performance, where he first scored 46 runs with the bat and then took 5 for 22. Will Jacks says that it was a really good all-round effort from the team and it feels good to navigate a tricky period with the bat. Adds that they have had excellent communication regarding how the pitch was playing and he personally felt that the pitch was a bit difficult to start on. On his role as finisher, Jacks says that he is now starting to accept this role. On his bowling, he says that he had already batted on the deck and knew a bit of what to do with the ball. Ends by admitting that it was a pretty decent delivery to seal his five-wicket haul.

Presentation time ...

Jacks directs a dominant English victory - The second innings belonged entirely to Will Jacks, who spun a web around the Lankan batters to claim a magnificent five-wicket haul. Jamie Overton provided excellent support with a couple of wickets, and the rest of the bowling attack, barring Jofra Archer, chipped in to close out the game. A clinical bowling performance ensured England secured a comprehensive 89-run victory to take the lead in the ODI series.

Visitors falter after a promising start - Chasing 266, Sri Lanka started steadily as their opening pair put up 27 runs. They looked firmly in the contest at 84 for 2 by the 20th over, thanks to a solid 42 from Kusal Mendis and a top-scoring effort of 45 from Dunith Wellalage. However, the chase completely derailed from that point onward. An under-par batting display from the rest of the lineup triggered a collapse, seeing the visitors bowled out for a disappointing 176.

Sri Lankan bowlers struck in batches - Sri Lanka's bowling attack showed resilience, chipping away at England's deep batting lineup to keep the score in check. Asitha Fernando and debutant Sachindu Colombage were the picks of the bowlers, claiming three wickets apiece with disciplined spells. The rest of the bowling unit supported them, with each bowler taking a wicket to dismantle the English outfit just short of their full 50 overs.

England set a strong platform - England win the first ODI by 89 runs. England posted a competitive total of 265 before being bowled out in the 49th over after electing to bat first. The cornerstone of their innings was a cohesive effort from the middle order, which clicked in unison to anchor the team. Skipper Harry Brook led from the front, top-scoring with a fluent 67 off 69 balls. Contributions from Joe Root and Will Jacks, who both scored in the 40s, alongside handy 30s from Jos Buttler and Ben Duckett, ensured the hosts set a challenging target despite losing wickets in the death overs.

Dilshan Madushanka is out last to bat for Lanka.

Asitha Fernando walks out at 10.

At the same stage, England were 199 for.