Player of the Match
Player of the Match

That's it from us for this game. Andrew McGlashan is updating the report shortly, and there's plenty more to come from our man Alan Gardner in Chittagong, so look out for that.


England have done something special here, not just because they toppled the top-ranked team, but also because they snapped Sri Lanka's 14-match unbeaten streak. Even 12 overs into the chase, they were well behind. They banked on catching up when the ball got wet towards the end, and Hales was too good in the final few overs.


Broad: "That's a very special knock and one of the best I've seen in an England shirt. World events are a big and that kind of win will give our dressing room a lot of belief. I feel for Sri Lanka's bowlers with the dew. We changed about four or five balls in the innings. We've been fielding with wet balls at training, we should probably make it wet bars of soap I think. The confidence we've got with the bat scoring 172 against New Zealand and this match today, we've got a lot of momentum. Alex's knock is one of the best I've ever seen. He kept up with the asking rate throughout and hit boundaries at the end."


Chandimal: "We started well thanks to Mahela and Dilshan. It was a good total, but it was difficult with the dew for our bowlers. We had two spinners, but they couldn't grip the ball - especially Mendis. Not sure how serious Mahela's injuy is. Alex batted really well, so did Morgan. We'll have to pick up the pieces and get ready for the next game."


Mendis was always going to struggle with the dew, and it was that 25-run over that swung it for England. They'll go back and have a look at their strategy.


Sree: "Whaddaplaya!!!! Hales, you the man. To see him smash Kula (a bowler full of confidence), especially at a time when he is nearing his hundred (considering he's been out twice before in the nineties), is a truly great sight. England's future is in real good hands. You can also see his name appear 4 times in the top 8 scores for England T20I. Hats off to you sir."


Hales is obviously man of the match. "We weren't in good form coming in, but we're buzzing now. After two wickets we knew if we stayed in we were in the game. The way Morgy played was outstanding. Centuries in this format don't come often. I've had a couple of 90s and it's good to get over the line. It's great to get on the board in the tournament. Without a shadow of a doubt it's the best I've ever played."

19.2
6
Mathews to Hales, SIX, tees off and that's it! Without a doubt, that is the innings of the tournament. Length ball on the stumps, Hales just waits for it and blasts it into the stratosphere on the leg side! What a comeback this has been! This is the highest T20 chase for England. The England dugout is ecstatic, and why not? Some seriously smart cricket from Hales and Morgan.
19.1
1
Mathews to Bopara, 1 run, Bopara runs at him, Mathews sees it, pulls back the length and bowls a slower ball. Somehow Bopara gets bat on it, with a cross-batted shot and it dribbles away to short fine leg

Mathews to bowl the last over. He has six runs to defend. England need 7 to win. Prabhash Miriya: "Where is Sten, please ask him to come for just one over"

END OF OVER:
19 | 16 Runs | ENG: 183/4 (7 runs required from 6 balls, RR: 9.63, RRR: 7.00)

  • Alex Hales110 (63b)
  • Ravi Bopara10 (5b)
  • Nuwan Kulasekara4-1-32-4
  • Lasith Malinga4-0-31-0
18.6
0
Kulasekara to Hales, no run, wide yorker, Hales tries to guide it to third man fence, but misses
18.5
1
Kulasekara to Bopara, 1 run, full and on off stump again, punched down to long on
18.4
1
Kulasekara to Hales, 1 run, fullish outside off drilled towards cover for one
18.3
6
Kulasekara to Hales, SIX, length ball on the stumps, that's smashed high over deep midwicket for six. What a shot! That is sent way, way back into the stands.
18.2
6
Kulasekara to Hales, SIX, Hey OH! This could be it! Is this the stroke that seals the game? Hales walkes across the stumps, so Kule fires it even wider, and it's a length ball, Hales throws his bat at it, and carves it beautifully over cover for a flat six. That's Hales' hundred as well. What a way to get there!
18.1
2
Kulasekara to Hales, 2 runs, wide yorker, drilled out square on the off side. Kusal Perera runs around to cut it off, and Hales comes back. A better throw might have had him in trouble, but he's safe

Vikram Raj: "Well played Bopara! Setting up Malinga with a press conference, and getting two fours off of him in the first two balls, and very possibly deflating all Sri Lankan hopes." Kulasekara to bowl this 19th over.

END OF OVER:
18 | 11 Runs | ENG: 167/4 (23 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 9.27, RRR: 11.50)

  • Alex Hales95 (58b)
  • Ravi Bopara9 (4b)
  • Lasith Malinga4-0-31-0
  • Nuwan Kulasekara3-1-16-4
17.6
1
Malinga to Hales, 1 run, slow yorker on the toes, clipped to deep square leg. Just the one.
17.5
0
Malinga to Hales, no run, yorker on off stump, drilled straight to cover. Dot ball.
17.5
1w
Malinga to Hales, 1 wide, wide, fired down the leg side. Sanga is almost appealing, but he's not touched that.
17.4
1
Malinga to Bopara, 1 run, this is the slower one on the toes, slightly overpitched. It's turned towards midwicket for one.
17.3
0
Malinga to Bopara, no run, yorker outside off stump again, Bopara opens the face agaiin, but can't connect this time
17.2
4
Malinga to Bopara, FOUR, and again. Super shot once more. Malinga goes for the wide yorker, maybe gets a bit wider than he actually wanted. Bopara reaches out and opens the face again, and that goes even quicker to the fine third man boundary. Lovely hands from Bopara.
17.1
4
Malinga to Bopara, FOUR, oh and what a shot to play first ball. He knew this would be a yorker, so he backs away and opens the face to get it wide of the keeper to the fine leg fence. Bopara is the finisher. Can he get the best of Malinga?

Massive six-man conference about who should bowl this next over. Kule has another over. Malinga has one. Who will it be? It's Malinga to bowl. Sri Lanka gamble.

END OF OVER:
17 | 5 Runs 2 Wkts | ENG: 156/4 (34 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 9.17, RRR: 11.33)

  • Alex Hales94 (56b)
  • Nuwan Kulasekara3-1-16-4
  • Lasith Malinga3-0-20-0
16.6
W
Kulasekara to Buttler, OUT, gone! A fourth for Kulasekara, and this one is off a short ball, around stomach high. Buttler backs away and tried to thump it over the straight boundary, but it takes the top edge and it loops to cover, where Chandimal backpedals and holds the catch, close to his chest.

JC Buttler c Chandimal b Kulasekara 2 (3m 3b 0x4 0x6) SR: 66.66

16.6
1w
Kulasekara to Buttler, 1 wide, short ball, but too short. That's over the head and given wide
16.5
2
Kulasekara to Buttler, 2 runs, Buttler comes at Kulasekara, who delivers a yorker on the stumps. He;s squeezed that to cover, who has a shy at the stumps as the batsmen scamper through. Kule doesn't collect cleanly at the stumps and gives away an unnecessary run.
16.4
0
Kulasekara to Buttler, no run, length ball outside off stump again. Buttler comes forward and drives it on the up straight to cover.
16.3
1
Kulasekara to Hales, 1 run, length ball outside off, Hales walks across and pushes this into the leg side for a single
  • Hales achieves blast-off

    No Englishman had scored a T20 international century until Alex Hales did it while taking Sri Lanka apart in a tall chase

  • The problem with low catches

    The cricket cognoscenti is largely eager to give the fielder the benefit of the doubt when a catch is referred. This should not be the case

  • Why do we over-react when changing cricket's rules?

    Instead of helping umpires react instinctively to situations, we have burdened them with misleading technology that has turned them into second-class citizens

  • Chandimal suspended for one match

    Dinesh Chandimal will miss Sri Lanka's final group match against New Zealand after he was suspended for one match due to Sri Lanka being found guilty of maintaining a slow over rate for the second time inside 12 months

  • England discover map through uncharted waters

    Having tossed away opportunities in the field with reckless abandon and slumping into negative territory at the start of their chase, England found the courage to make amends

Late night chases

9

Nine of the eleven games beginning at 7:30pm in this tournament have been won by the team batting second

A new high

25

Runs Ajantha Mendis conceded in his 4th over, his most expensive in T20 internationals

Century partnerships

2

This is only the second time the third wicket has added a century stand after a team was 0 for 2

Dodgy start

0 for 2

The only other time England were two down for no score was in the last World T20, against West Indies

Bit of a struggle

44

Tillakaratne Dilshan's fifty equaled his slowest in T20Is