England vs Sri Lanka Live Score, Match 3 of England and Sri Lanka tour of Pakistan, 2026

Signing off from this cracking game - That brings us to the end of this absolute run-fest, with Sri Lanka pulling off a memorable win to get their Tri-Series campaign going. England, meanwhile, will have to wait for their first win in the series. The action continues on Sunday, 25th October, as hosts Pakistan take on England in the second round of matches. The game gets underway at 8 am GMT, so join us early for all the build-up. Until then, cheers and goodbye!

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - There were a lot of candidates for this one, but the award goes to Pavan Rathnayake for his incredible knock of 130 off 106 balls.

A tough pill to swallow - England made a promising start with the ball, as Josh Tongue produced a beauty to remove Kamindu Mendis before Gus Atkinson ran out the opposition skipper at the non-striker's end. However, things unravelled from there. Jamie Overton broke the first of the two massive partnerships, and Sam Curran dismissed Pavan Rathnayake to give England a glimmer of hope, but Dasun Shanaka and Janith Liyanage quickly snuffed it out. With 13 needed off 12 balls, Overton delivered an outstanding penultimate over, conceding just five runs. Tongue then took charge of the final over and started brilliantly, conceding just one run off the first three balls while dismissing two batters in consecutive deliveries. However, Liyanage regained the strike off the fourth ball and finished the job on the next, delivering a crushing blow to England's hopes.

England's batting firepower on full display - England had earlier launched a stunning assault to post the highest-ever ODI total in Pakistan, led by captain Harry Brook's magnificent double hundred, also the fastest in this format. Root played his part with a fine 69, sharing a 159-run stand with his skipper, while Banton added a good fifty up top before Jacks provided the late fireworks with 66 off just 30 balls. Dunith Wellalage was Sri Lanka's pick with a couple of wickets, while Asitha Fernando and Janith Liyanage chipped in with one each, though Liyanage was expensive and the rest of the attack also struggled to contain England's scoring.

Shanaka and Rathnayake turn the tide - Rathnayake continued to flourish, and the promotion of Dasun Shanaka proved a masterstroke as the pair smashed 133 runs off just 79 balls to set Sri Lanka up for a final assault. Rathnayake brought up a superb century but fell just two balls into Powerplay 3, leaving Shanaka with the responsibility of carrying the chase. He delivered with some exceptional hitting, combining with Janith Liyanage before falling agonisingly short of a hundred on 97. Liyanage kept the runs flowing, remaining unbeaten on 61 off just 27 balls, with Dunith Wellalage and Sahan Arachchige chipping in with crucial blows, before holding his nerve through a tense finish, sealing a stunning win with a towering six off the penultimate ball.

Sri Lanka recover after early blows - Chasing this record total, Sri Lanka were rocked early at 24/2, with skipper Mendis departing for a golden duck to add to their woes. However, Avishka Fernando showed tremendous composure and game awareness, keeping the chase alive with a steady flow of boundaries and excellent strike rotation. He found an ideal partner in Pavan Rathnayake, and the duo stitched together a massive 166-run stand to bring Sri Lanka back into the contest. Fernando looked set for a hundred but fell agonisingly short on 97, leaving the responsibility on his partner to carry on the fight.

A chase for the ages! Phew! That was some game of cricket, and we could all do with a breather after that! Not many would have backed Sri Lanka at the halfway mark, but that's the beauty of this game. The Lankans showed tremendous fight and determination to pull off a remarkable chase, joining South Africa and India as the only teams to successfully hunt down totals of over 400 in ODIs. They also bag two crucial points in the series, while England are left to rue a missed opportunity, having put up a mammoth 429 but still failing to get the job done.

SIX! Janith Liyanage finishes things off in style and becomes a hero forever. Sri Lanka win by 2 wickets, and this is the second-highest successful chase in ODI history. Josh Tongue goes for the slower one, serves this full and on off. Janith Liyanage waits for it, sets up a solid base and dispatches it over the long off fence for a biggie, sparking wild celebrations in the Lankan dugout.

No hat-trick! Back of a length and outside off, Asitha Fernando slashes and gets an outside edge towards deep third for a run. There is a fumble, but Janith Liyanage wants to keep the strike. 6 needed in 2 balls now.

Who will face the hat-trick ball? It will be Asitha Fernando.

OUT! TIMBER! Two in two for Josh Tongue, and England can believe again. This is full and on middle, angling in once again. Eshan Malinga tries to work it across the line but gets beaten by the pace on the ball as the ball clips his pads before rattling the stumps. Still 7 needed but in 3 balls.

A timely wicket for England. Eshan Malinga walks out to bat.

OUT! BOWLED'EM! Josh Tongue gets his second wicket but, more importantly, keeps Janith Liyanage at the other end. He goes full and on middle, angling in. Dunith Wellalage has an ugly hoick across the line but misses it completely as the ball crashes into the stumps. Sri Lanka need 7 runs in 4 balls now.

Pace off, back of a length and on middle, Janith Liyanage pulls it to deep mid-wicket for a single.

99 overs and we still don't know which team will win this game. Sri Lanka need 8 runs in the final over, and here is Josh Tongue ready to defend it.

Pitched up, on middle, Janith Liyanage drills it to long on for one more.

Short of a length and well outside off, Janith Liyanage slashes and misses.

Hard length and on middle, Dunith Wellalage heaves it off the inside half of the bat to deep square leg for a run.

Nasty blow! Bangs this into the pitch, on middle, takes off a bit. Dunith Wellalage looks to pull but gets hurried and the ball hits him on his chest and drops on the pitch. Wellalage starts to run blindly but is sent back and in the process of getting back, his foot touches the ball, moving it away. Jamie Overton was running towards the ball and is complaining, but there is nothing there.

Buzzers! Hard length and on off, Dunith Wellalage opens the bat face and steers it towards deep third for a run. The throw comes in at the keeper's end, where Jordan Cox fails to collect it cleanly and allows a a second run.

Back of a length and outside off, Janith Liyanage tries to cut but gets a top edge towards deep point for a single. 12 needed in 11 balls!

FOUR! Dunith Wellalage joins the party! Flighted, full and on off, Dunith Wellalage extends his arms and thumps it over the bowler's head for a boundary.

Quicker, shortish and on off, Janith Liyanage presses forward but then moves back and guides it to backward point for one.

FOUR! FIFTY FOR LIYANAGE! Off just 21 balls. This is probably his most crucial knock yet, but he will want to finish the job for his team now. A low full toss, on middle, Janith Liyanage gets under it and bludgeons it back past the bowler for a boundary.

Flatter, full and on leg, Dunith Wellalage drills it to long on for a run.

A bit short, around off, Dunith Wellalage steers it to point.

A full toss, on middle, Janith Liyanage miscues his lofted shot to long on for a single.

The next batter in is Dunith Wellalage.

OUT! TAKEN! Sam Curran has the last laugh here. He bowls a high full toss, on middle. Sahan Arachchige tries to slog it away but goes a bit to hard and mistimes it towards long on, where Will Jacks takes a good reverse cup catch. There is a check for a No Ball, but the replay shows that the ball was under the waist of the batter, who was also bending his back a bit. Sri Lanka are 406/6, chasing 430 runs.

FOUR! Not where he intended to hit, but he gets the result! Sam Curran sees the batter move across, lands this on a good length and on off. Sahan Arachchige looks to scoop it but it goes off the leading edge and flies over short third for four more runs.