Despite England captain Harry Brook setting a record by scoring a double century in ODI cricket, the Sri Lankan team managed to overturn this dominance. In a tense ODI Three-Series match held on October 22nd at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Sri Lanka reached the target of 430 runs, securing victory with two wickets remaining.
This success marks the second-largest successful run chase in the history of ODI cricket.
Harry Brook displayed an explosive innings, scoring 202 runs off just 116 balls. He surpassed Shubman Gill's record for completing a double century in 114 balls. Despite this memorable performance, which saw England score 429 runs in 50 overs while losing four batsmen, the team ultimately faced defeat.
When chasing such a large target, Sri Lanka's start was extremely poor: the team lost two batsmen, accumulating only 24 runs. The situation was stabilized thanks to the performances of Avishka Fernando and Pathan Ratnayake. These two added 166 runs for the third wicket, complicating matters for England. Fernando scored 97 runs off 83 balls, including 11 fours and 2 sixes. Ratnayake delivered a magnificent knock, scoring 130 runs off 106 balls, supported by 15 fours and three sixes. This partnership allowed Sri Lanka to regain momentum. Subsequently, Dasun Shanaka took on an aggressive role, scoring 97 runs off just 50 balls, featuring 8 sixes and 6 fours.
In the final over, Sri Lanka needed seven runs with six wickets down. Josh Tongue of England made the match even more thrilling by dismissing Dunith Wellalage and Ishan Malik consecutively. Sri Lanka then needed seven runs from three balls. The tenth batsman, Asitha Fernando, played one ball, handing the strike to Janith Linage. Linage then hit a magnificent six over long-off, securing the victory for Sri Lanka. The team reached the target with one ball remaining. Linage scored 61 runs off 27 balls without being dismissed, hitting 7 fours and 3 sixes.
Sri Lanka registered its largest successful chase in ODI cricket. Previously, their best chase was achieved in 2017 against India at The Oval, where they needed to overcome a target of 322 runs. It is worth noting that the record for the largest successful chase in ODI cricket still belongs to South Africa, who won by scoring 438 runs against Australia in 2006. Sri Lanka also set a record for the largest successful chase in ODI cricket against England.
Table of the largest chases in ODI matches:
- 435 South Africa vs Australia, Johannesburg 2006
- 430 Sri Lanka vs England, Rawalpindi 2026
- 406 India vs West Indies, Guwahati 2026
- 375 Nepal vs West Indies, Harare 2023 (victory in super over)
- 372 South Africa vs Australia, Durban 2016