Say what you want about this England team, but no one beats them away from home in a one-day international 12 times in a row.
In a world of grey areas, culture reviews and Ashes defeats, there has been one wonderful constant provided by this England set-up over the past couple of years: they have been terrible at ODI cricket.
Across their past 19 matches, they had won only five. Entering the second ODI against Sri Lanka yesterday, they had equalled their longest ever winless run away from home with 11 consecutive defeats. Brendon McCullum had been in charge of 10 away one-day internationals and lost all of them.
At some level, England’s struggles in the format are reassuring. The introduction of the Hundred in 2021 has meant that none of the country’s top players plays in the domestic 50-over competition that runs concurrently.
The result is that squad selection is guesswork. Hunches on the basis of performances in either first-class or T20 cricket rather than the format itself. A scenario that was no better illustrated than by the re-selection of Zak Crawley to open in the ODI XI after more than two years out of the side. The number of 50-over matches Crawley has played since to earn back his place? Zero.
After making six in the first match, Crawley was injured and replaced at the top of the order for the second match by the 21-year-old Rehan Ahmed, who had never batted higher than No7 and made a score of more than 40. For as long as their best players do not have the opportunity to practise the format, England’s path to improvement in the 50-over game is unclear.
But one player with experience is Joe Root. And in Colombo he proved once again his genius with a cruise-control innings of 75 in England’s successful pursuit of 220. While a meagre total on paper, the wicket in Colombo was treacherously difficult to bat on, and winning the toss and batting first was a considerable advantage.
England’s victory, after losing the toss, is an impressive one that deserves credit. It is the first time in nine matches that the team batting second have won an ODI at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
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“The pitch was absolutely ragging and the odd one would skid through,” said captain Harry Brook.
“It was the worst pitch I’ve ever played on. Root was the only person who looked confident from the get-go. His footwork and his ability to pick length is immaculate. You can learn a hell of a lot from him.”
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England’s five-wicket victory ties the series at 1-1 with the final match at the same venue on Tuesday. A win will give England only their second one-day series win in their past eight attempts and will be important for other reasons.
Cricket often finds itself searching for context, and while three ODIs sandwiched between the Ashes and a T20 World Cup seem as anonymous a contest as there could be, England’s form in 50-over cricket has been so poor that they are at risk of failing to qualify automatically for the 2027 ODI World Cup. Every win is precious.
“It was a tough game,” said Brook. “Probably not the most thrilling, but I’m glad that we got a victory.”
Photograph by Ishara S Kodikara/AFP via Getty Images