Joe Root’s ton was in vain as unbeaten centurions Kumar Sangakkara and Lahiru Thirimanne saw Sri Lanka overhaul England’s 309 for six with nine wickets and 16 balls to spare at the Wellington Regional Stadium.
Root, who was dropped on two, accumulated intelligently all round the wicket for his fourth one-day international century, which made him England’s youngest World Cup hundred-maker, aged 24 years and 61 days.
Thirimanne mimicked Root by becoming Sri Lanka’s youngest World Cup centurion, at 25 years and 174 days, also with his fourth ODI ton.
Thirimanne, shelled on three, shared an unbroken 212 with veteran Kumar Sangakkara, 37 ,who sped to three figures from 70 balls before ending on 117 to his partner’s 139. It was Sangakkara’s 23rd and fastest format hundred.
Like Thirimanne, Root’s 121 from 108 balls was his highest ODI score. It set up what appeared to be a competitive total, but one Sri Lanka made light work of.
Sri Lanka, second in Pool A, therefore move to six points while England, second from bottom, stay on two. Eoin Morgan’s side must now win their last two group games versus Bangladesh and Afghanistan to reach the quarter-finals.
Today Morgan won the toss and named an unchanged side while Sri Lanka also showed no alterations.
Moeen Ali and Ian Bell each scored two consecutive fours early on, the former via two sweet drives and the latter somewhat streakily behind square on the off side.
Bell survived twice in a Suranga Lakmal over, dropped by Dinesh Chandimal at cover-point and Tillakaratne Dilshan at backward point.
Moeen, unable to find the fluency that aided his century versus Scotland on Monday, chipped Angelo Mathews to mid-off towards the end of the batting powerplay.
Soon after, Gary Ballance, also struggling to score freely, gave Dilshan a simple return catch.
Root survived when Mahela Jayawardene could not hold a low slip chance off Mathews, who along with Dilshan stalled England’s progress.
Root and Bell consolidated but the latter fell one short of a fifty, playing on to Lakmal via pad.
Morgan joined Root in rebuilding during the middle overs, towards the end of which they began to find the odd boundary as the latter moved to his fifty from 65 balls.
Their alliance was worth 60 when Morgan was caught at backward point off Thisara Perera for 27 in the over before the batting powerplay was forced.
Root and James Taylor took 42 from the restrictions, soon after which the former launched Mathews for a leg-side six and then went to three figures from his 100th delivery.
Taylor responded with a midwicket maximum off Thisara in an over that yielded 25. Although he departed to Lasith Malinga, in similar fashion to Morgan, for 25 to end a sprightly stand of 98 and Root was lbw to Rangana Herath despite a review, Jos Buttler maintained momentum.
Buttler, with 39 not out from 19 balls, smashed Lakmal for an off-side six in the last over that went for 22 and saw the seamer removed from the attack for two high full-tosses.
Thirimanne’s let-off came in the reply’s fourth over when he edged Stuart Broad to Root at first slip at a comfortable height. Root was distracted by gloveman Buttler initially shaping as if to go for the catch but pulling out.
Dilshan announced himself with two leg-side sixes off Broad, and Thirimanne grew in confidence with two pairs of fours.
The openers put on 100 until Dilshan chipped Moeen to midwicket in the 19th over. His 44 contained four fours and those two maximums.
If that gave England hope, Sangakkara quickly dashed that, albeit he initially played with caution. On a flat surface, he and Thirimanne found the rope with increasing ease. Each cleared the boundary twice while the former hit 11 fours and the latter 13.
Sangakkara, who made an unbeaten century on Thursday against Bangladesh, was particularly harsh on anything short, speeding from a fifty to a hundred in 25 balls.
Thirimanne, who on 114 was shelled by Taylor on the leg-side rope, smote Chris Woakes over long-on to end the contest.
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Captain Eoin Morgan: 'We bowled a lot of bad balls and didn't take our chances in the field.'#EngvSL#CWC15pic.twitter.com/LTYjQglxFi
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) March 1, 2015
Thirimanne on 139*: '2nd or 3rd best knock in my career. Capitilised on early luck & wanted to bat through.'#EngvSLpic.twitter.com/c2jUYr9PEo
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) March 1, 2015
Post-match reaction
England captain Eoin Morgan said:“We certainly lost it with the ball. At half-time we thought we had an above-par score. All credit to Joe Root. He was magnificent in the way he played. He showed his calm.”
Morgan added: “We probably bowled a bad ball every one, one and a half overs, which at this level you get punished for. We were punished today by a very experienced side.”
Man of the match Kumar Sangakkara, who hit his fastest one-day international ton, said: “The wicket was pretty good and everything I tried came off.
“It was just a case of batting long and build a partnership. If we have to chase 10 an over in the last nine-10 overs we were pretty confident we could do it.”
Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews said:“That was a brilliant performance. I thought it was a very good wicket. I thought 310 was a bit too much but it was a brilliant effort by the batsmen.”
On Thirimanne and Sangakkara’s hundreds, he added: “That was two of the greatest knocks I’ve ever seen.”
Sri Lanka innings
5.33am – RESULT! SRI LANKA WIN BY NINE WICKETS! SL 312/1; Thirimanne 139, Sangakkara 117 – Thirimanne emphatically ends proceedings with 16 balls unused by smiting Woakes over the long-on rope. Sri Lanka, second in Pool A, move to six points while England, second from bottom, stay on two. Eoin Morgan’s side must win their last two group games versus Bangladesh and Afghanistan to reach the quarter-finals.
5.24am – CHANCE! – Thirimanne launches Woakes high towards the leg-side boundary where James Taylor runs round and can’t quite hold a diving catch, with the ball trickling to the rope. The batsman follows up with a ramped four and a double-hundred partnership soon comes, leaving 10 runs required from four overs.
5.14am – Sangakkara and Thirimanne combine for two back-to-back fours, off Anderson and Broad, as they move nearer their target.
5.06am – CENTURY! Sangakkara (70b 10x4 2x6) – The veteran, having taken Broad for a leg-side two in the previous over, scampers two off Anderson to bring up his 23rd ODI hundred. It’s been another batting masterclass from the legend.
5am – Sri Lanka are sitting pretty on 247 for one from 40 overs. They need 63 runs from 60 balls. By the way, the powerplay cost 54.
4.52am – CENTURY! Thirimanne (117b 10x4 1x6) – The left-hander drives through the covers for a single to reach his fourth one-day international ton and become Sri Lanka’s youngest World Cup centurion. Sangakkara then hits Woakes for three successive fours, two via cuts either side of one down the ground, to move to 92.
4.50am – CHANCE! – Moeen, having just been brought in from the rope, can’t hold on low at cover-point as Thirimanne gets a single to move to 99, having been one hit from a ton for some time. Before that Sangakkara flicked Broad to the midwicket rope before pulling Anderson for two fours.
Century stand between Thirimanne (97*) & Sangakkara (63*). 210-1, 100 more runs required to win. #EngvSL#CWC15pic.twitter.com/E2c4PlgKOm
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) March 1, 2015
4.33am – FIFTY! Sangakkara (45b 3x4 1x6) – The classy left-hander starts the powerplay with a four off Broad and soon moves to an imperious half-century. Sangakkara then pulls Finn for a maximum to raise a hundred partnership.
4.24am – Moeen, who has just completed his allocation, and Finn combine for three consecutive overs without a boundary. England require a few more like that, and a wicket or too! Sangakkara emphatically finds the boundary, flat-batting Finn over mid-off for a maximum. At 188 for one, Sri Lanka take the batting powerplay an over early.
4.15am – Woakes concedes a four to each batsman, making Sri Lanka 166 for one from 30 overs. England need a breakthrough here.
4.07am – Thirimanne sweetly guides Woakes aerially to the third-man rope for four at the end of the 28th over. The opener then slog-sweeps Moeen for his first six.
3.57am – Woakes has replaced Root but Moeen continues. Sri Lanka are 131 for one from half their overs. Looks like we’re in for a close game.
3.48am – It’s spin from both ends with Joe Root joining Moeen in the attack. Thirimanne and Kumar Sangakkara each hit a four as the bowlers err a little.
3.38am – WICKET! Dilshan c Morgan b Moeen 44; SL 100/1 – Dilshan miscues Moeen to midwicket, where Morgan accepts a facile catch. That’s the breakthrough England needed.
3.36am – FIFTY! Thirimanne (58b 7x4 0x6) – Moeen and Finn continue, each bowling an over without a boundary. The left-hander moves to an impressive half-century in the same over, the 19th, that the hundred partnership arrives.
3.17am – Thirimanne cover-drives Woakes for four and Dilshan clips Finn to the midwicket rope. Sri Lanka are 78 without loss from 14 overs. Moeen Ali’s spin replaces Woakes, but Moeen himself concedes a dabbed four in his first over. Dilshan then replicates his four off Finn.
Foot loose - first Amla loses his shoe while taking a run and now Dilshan does the same
— John Etheridge (@JohnSunCricket) March 1, 2015
3.07am – Eoin Morgan makes a double bowling change after the powerplay, with Chris Woakes and Steven Finn into the attack. Woakes begins well but Thirimanne takes Finn for two consecutive fours, one either side of the wicket.
12 totals of 300+ scored batting first @cricketworldcup 2015. Only one team @Irelandcricket have chased a 300+ target #bbccricket
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) March 1, 2015
2.53am – Thirimanne sweetly drives Anderson for two fours in an over, the second moving Sri Lanka past 50 inside the mandatory powerplay, which yields 55 after a cheap Broad over.
2.41am – Thirimanne drives Anderson past mid-off but a fired-up Broad responds with a maiden. However, the dangerous Dilshan then pulls Broad for two sixes.
2.30am – CHANCE!– After another tight Anderson over, Thirimanne edges Broad to first slip where Joe Root, perhaps put off by wicketkeeper Jos Buttler initially shaping to go for a catch, shells the ball which goes for four. Broad then bowls a very short delivery that goes comfortably over Buttler for four byes.
2.18am – The reply starts with James Anderson bowling to Lahiru Thirimanne and Tillakaratne Dilshan. Stuart Broad is on at the other end and concedes four first ball from a thick Dilshan edge.
England innings
1.46pm – END OF INNINGS! Eng 309/6; Buttler 39, Woakes 9 – An eventful last over! Lakmal starts it with a high full-toss that Buttler pulls for four, and the batsman follows up with an off-side boundary. After Buttler then smashes a six over extra-cover, the seamer delivers another high full-toss and is removed from the attack. Dilshan bowls the last two balls and Buttler ends with a leg-side four to reach 39 not out from 19 deliveries.
1.39am – Buttler belts a ball back at Herath, who instinctively attempts a catch but only gets a finger to it and seems to be injured. He has to leave the field and Thisara completes the over, conceding a four to Chris Woakes over point.
1.34am – Buttler, having quickly recovered from that blow with a pull off Malinga, picks up two off-side fours in the paceman’s next over. England are 279 for six with 12 balls to go.
1.27am – REVIEW & WICKET! Root lbw Herath 121; Eng 265/6 – Root can’t connect with a reverse-sweep and is trapped in front. His review is in vain although HawkEye showed the ball was almost going down leg.
Brilliant from @joeroot05#FromYorkshire#CWC15#ENGvSL
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) March 1, 2015
1.17am – WICKET! Taylor c Dilshan b Malinga 25; Eng 259/5 – Taylor can only play a full and wide Malinga ball to backward point, but his 26-delivery innings and 98-run stand with Root have been important to England. Jos Buttler’s first ball is a brute of a bouncer that hits him on the side of the helmet. Buttler gets on-field treatmemt.
1.13am – Taylor advances to Thisara and hits him for a leg-side six. Root completes an over worth 25, with four, six, four, four. Brilliant batting from this pair! England are 257 for four from 45 overs.
1.07am – CENTURY! Root (100b 11x4 1x6) – The number four, who in the previous over squeezed Malinga through point for four, launches Mathews over wide long-on to move to 96. Root’s cover-drive then just beats a fielder to the rope as he reaches three figures to warm applause. Aged 24 years and 61 days, he becomes England’s youngest World Cup centurion!
Well played lads! 50-run partnership off 41 balls between Root (85*) & Taylor (13*) guides England to 211-4. #EngvSL#CWC15
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) March 1, 2015
12.51am – Root immediately mimics Taylor’s shot, off Malinga, as England take a healthy 42 from the powerplay. They are 203 for four with 10 overs to go.
12.45am – REVIEW!– Root is hit high on the pad by a Lakmal full-toss. Sri Lanka surprisingly ask for another look, but the ball is going comfortably down leg. Root, who dived to scramble a leg-bye, receives brief treatment. James Taylor ends the over with a four through a vacant slip region.
12.35am – Root strikes a four in each of the first two powerplay overs, the first with an excellent sweep off Herath and the next a cute cut off Thisara. The half-centurion pulls Malinga for another four in the next over.
12.22am – WICKET! Morgan c Dilshan b Thisara 27; Eng 161/4 – The left-hander powerfully cuts straight to Dilshan at backward point and the skipper is on his way, ending a stand of 60. At the end of the over the powerplay is forced.
12.19am – FIFTY! Root (65b 4x4 0x6) – The right-hander works Mathews to long-leg and comes back for a second run, diving to make his ground. The umpires check the latter via replays but Root is able to celebrate a half-century.
It's no longer double the 30-over total, it's double the 32-over total if you have wickets in hand. So 300 should be on for England.
— John Etheridge (@JohnSunCricket) March 1, 2015
12.10am – Morgan launches Herath down the ground for four shortly before bringing up a valuable fifty partnership. The captain and Root are starting to reap the rewards of playing themselves in.
12.03am – Root neatly sweeps the returning Herath for four as England reach 145 for three from 30 overs. Welcome to Sunday, and March, to those in the UK!
11.56pm – Root gets lucky as he inside-edges Thisara just past the stumps for four, the first boundary in five overs. Perhaps inspired, Morgan slog-sweeps Dilshan for the innings’ first six.
11.46pm – Thisara Perera is into the attack and continues to keep England under wraps. They are 118 for three from half their overs.
11.40pm – Root top-edges a pull off Lakmal but it lands safely, wide of fine-leg. The batsman immediately responds with a controlled cut for four.
Bell out after a curate's omelette of an innings. 35 off 24 with 7 fours. Then 14 off 29 with 0 fours. Then plays on. Eng 101-3 in 21st.
— Andy Zaltzman (@ZaltzCricket) February 28, 2015
11.27pm – WICKET! Bell b Lakmal 49; Eng 101/3 – The double change works for Sri Lanka as Bell plays on to Lakmal, via pad. The opener narrowly misses out on a fifty. Eoin Morgan gets going by driving four through mid-off from the last ball of the over.
11.26pm – It’s a double bowling change with Rangana Herath on for Mathews, who has pegged England back with 1-22 from seven overs. A Root single takes the score to 100 for two from 20 overs.
11.19pm – Dilshan and Mathews continue to keep it tight. Lakmal, who was expensive at the start, then returns, taking over from Dilshan, without going for too many.
11.09pm – Root drives a Mathews half-volley to the cover rope as he and Bell look to keep the scoreboard ticking while consolidating the loss of Moeen and Ballance.
11pm – CHANCE! – Joe Root survives as Mahela Jayawardene can’t accept a low opportunity at first slip off Mathews. It was tricky, but you’d expect Jayawardene to take that.
10.54pm – WICKET! Ballance c & b Dilshan 6; Eng 71/2 – Gary Ballance, who has been watchful to start with, announces himself by neatly cover-driving Mathews to the boundary. But he then gives the economical Dilshan a simple return catch, his 100th scalp in one-day internationals.
Saw this on the walk into the ground. pic.twitter.com/qjbAidmFCO
— Matt Somerford (@somerfjord) February 28, 2015
10.43pm – WICKET! Moeen c Lakmal b Mathews 15; Eng 62/1 – Dilshan replaces Malinga with his off-spin and begins with an over costing just one. Moeen then miscues a simple catch to mid-off in the last over of the powerplay, which yields 62. That was a tame dismissal from Monday’s hundred-maker.
50-up for England off 39 balls in the seventh over. 51-0 #EngvSL#CWC15
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 28, 2015
10.28pm – Moeen denies Malinga a maiden over by cover-driving the last ball for four. Captain Angelo Mathews takes over from Lakmal and starts with a tight set of six.
10.21pm – CHANCES!– What a remarkable fourth over! It starts with three fours, one either side of the wicket from Bell, sandwiching five leg-side wides from Lakmal. Bell is then shelled by Dinesh Chandimal at cover-point and Dilshan at backward point. Both were tough opportunities.
10.16pm – Ian Bell also picks up back-to-back fours, off Malinga, although the first almost gives a catch to Tillakaratne Dilshan at backward point before a controlled edge goes past the slip cordon.
10.10pm – Moeen, a centurion versus Scotland, shows he is in fine touch with two consecutive fours off Suranga Lakmal, the first a sweet cover-drive and the second a crisp on-drive.
Our view from the press box at 'The Cake Tin'. England 1-0 after first over. #EngvSL#CWC15pic.twitter.com/bEqNog0kk7
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 28, 2015
10.01pm – We are under way! Lasith Malinga is opening the bowling to Moeen Ali who gets going third ball with a single to leg, the only run of the over.
Pre-play news
9.57pm – After the lengthy Sri Lanka national anthem, God save the Queen rings out. The action is just a few minutes away!
A quick message from @finnysteve, @jamestaylor20, @joeroot05& Paul Farbrace for YOU! #LoveEnglandhttps://t.co/uavxczM1Ks
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 28, 2015
9.45pm –Eoin Morgan also spoke to the media ahead of this match. Here’s what he had to say.
Some brilliant messages in here from YOU! C'mon England! #LoveEngland#CWC15https://t.co/aSfQ6Mn9h4
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 28, 2015
#ENGvSL: Despite rumours that Alex Hales could come in for Gary Ballance, England are unchanged. Here are the teams: pic.twitter.com/D8KPpzR9Z6
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) February 28, 2015
9.32pm – ENGLAND WIN THE TOSS AND BAT! – Both teams are unchanged. That keeps life simple!
Great support here for England!!! One fan has made a big effort! #LoveEngland#EngvSLpic.twitter.com/1AQVIj9Wll
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 28, 2015
9.20pm – Hello and welcome to ecb.co.uk's coverage of England’s vital World Cup game with Sri Lanka in Wellington. The toss is due in 10 minutes. Until then, why not read Chris Woakes’ thoughts ahead of this clash?
Running pick-ups and throws #LoveEngland#EngvSLhttps://t.co/zQTYkdlB9F
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 28, 2015