England complete T20 series whitewash over Sri Lanka – live!

Hoo boy. That was a thrashing. Seven laps of the pool table with your trousers round your ankles. Sri Lanka have been belted across these three T20 matches, and now the series is over. The same number of 50-over matches will follow, and perhaps the longer format will give them time to take a few deep breaths and not be rushed into such self-destruction.

England had a great day out. Half centuries for Bairstow and Malan at the top of the order, and a score for the latter is important given he’s been struggling of late. Wickets for six of seven bowlers, except for Rashid who got one over right at the end. A huge margin of victory, and an easy sleep tonight.

That’s it from us as well, until the next match. Stay well.

Moeen Ali angles in, traps the batsman in front of off stump, and that’s it.

18th over: Sri Lanka 89-9 (Sandakan 1, Chameera 0) A couple of blocks from the No11 with two balls to go in the over.

Livingstone gets a bowl to partner Rashid with his off spin. Pings them in fast at the stumps. Sandakan bunts a single to midwicket. Fernando skips down at the first opportunity and lamps him for six! Over long on. Simple. I can see this guy belting a Test fifty against a tired attack at some stage when he debuts. But he goes across the line to Livingstone’s fourth ball and is bowled.

17th over: Sri Lanka 80-8 (Fernando 13, Sandakan 0) Aaaaahhhh, I just did a double take because yes, Adil Rashid is still in the team. He’s bowling his first over for the day. Coming in to the party late, but swinging his jacket around his head. Binura Fernado decides to have a go. And why not. Bunts two through cover, then drags four through square leg. Carves away two more through point. A late bit of fun for Sri Lanka.

16th over: Sri Lanka 71-8 (Fernando 4, Sandakan 0) Fernando hits the gap at cover and somehow gets back for three. That’s about it though. Jordan wraps up his day with 1 for 13 from four overs. These are some verrrry flattering figures all round.

15th over: Sri Lanka 67-8 (Fernando 1, Sandakan 0) David Willey finishes his four overs with 3 for 27. Basically if anyone playing for England had a bad day, that’s entirely their problem.

God, what else is there to say. Udana gets a short ball, has a hook, and gets caught at fine leg.

14th over: Sri Lanka 64-7 (Udana 0, Fernando 0) Binura Fernando to the middle. Happy Hour.

All in all, it’s just another brick in the wall. Not a well constructed wall. Jordan angles into the pads, Hasaranga gets a thick edge, and the fact that Morgan can still have a slip catching in the 14th over speaks for itself.

13th over: Sri Lanka 64-6 (Hasaranga 1, Udana 0) Thirteen overs down. About time for Sri Lanka to put (themselves?) (the rest of us?) out of (their?) (our?) misery.

God, this is limp. This is meringue left out in a summer rain. This is folding into the earth with a guttural sound. Dickwella plays across his front pad, chipping Curran to mid on for the softest of catches. Pllllrrrrrrrrmppttt.

12th over: Sri Lanka 62-5 (Dickwella 10, Hasaranga 0) Falling apart, with the leg-spinner coming out to bat in the 12th over. Woakes finishes his four over spell with 1 for 9!

Shanaka clips away to midwicket, runs one, wants two, gets send back, and the throw from Billings beats him home. It’s all coming up for England!

11th over: Sri Lanka 60-4 (Dickwella 10, Shanaka 6) A bit of luck for Shanaka, who gloves Curran down the leg side for four runs to fine leg. Then gets a no ball to finish the over, which doesn’t finish the over. Slams the free hit over midwicket for a single.

10th over: Sri Lanka 53-4 (Dickwella 9, Shanaka 1) Woakes back in the attack. Concedes a leg bye to Dickwella first ball. Won’t mind that. That leaves Shanaka to do a fair bit of swinging and swaying and otherwise achieving very little.

9th over: Sri Lanka 49-4 (Dickwella 8, Shanaka 0) Only three runs from the Curran over, including the wide. Plus a wicket. England doing it easy.

Osh catch b’gosh. Another simple catch. Tries to go large in one direction or other, gets a big leading edge high to point.

8th over: Sri Lanka 46-3 (Fernando 19, Dickwella 6) Jordan is having a ball. Making Dickwella swing and miss and swing and miss. Three runs from the over. An implosion is coming.

7th over: Sri Lanka 43-3 (Fernando 18, Dickwella 5) England are all over this team. Livingstone tries the sliding catch coming in from deep cover again but can’t quite get there and hang on as Dickwella got the big leading edge in that direction. Four from the over.

6th over: Sri Lanka 39-3 (Fernando 17, Dickwella 4) This could be what you call parry and thrust. In that Oshada Fernando has had three big swings outside the off stump, and hit another ball off Jordan for six over long on. Try, try, and try again.

5th over: Sri Lanka 33-3 (Fernando 11, Dickwella 4) This game is going in fast forward. Dickwella walks out, glances his first ball for four, going down leg.

Kusal Mendis is there at second drop. Sri Lanka struggling again, already. Mendis stands and delivers against Willey, bowling his third over on the trot. Spanks a lofted off-drive for four. Big follow through and it lands just short of the rope. No, on the rope. Six!

Next ball, straight to DRS. Willey angles left-arm across the right-hander. Mendis hangs the bat out. Umpire gives him out caught behind. Mendis reviews. The waveform graph finds a little nick on the bat.

“Oh, bUt tHe BaTsMaN AlWaYs KnOws WhEn hE’s HiT iT!”

Uh huh.

4th over: Sri Lanka 23-2 (Fernando 11) Woakes for the fourth over, and they still can’t get him away. A couple of singles, a close call with a throw to the striker’s end. Then the sixth ball brings the reward. Nothing striking, a ball on the pads that the left-handed Perera chips in the air to midwicket. Livingstone comes charging in off the rope, slides and claims it.

3rd over: Sri Lanka 20-1 (Perera 2, Fernando 9) The third over, and Kusal Perera finally gets to face his first ball. Still doesn’t get a run, he gets a leg bye. Finally gets the strike for the last ball of the over and scores a couple of runs.

2nd over: Sri Lanka 14-1 (Perera 0, Fernando 6) Second over, and Fernando cannot lay bat on Woakes. The right-armer is swinging the ball sharply outside the off stump. Also the changes of pace. Swing and miss, swing and miss. Three times. Four times. Five! Finally Fernando tries another scoop, gets a fat inside edge, it flies fine towards deep third, and he gets two very lucky runs. Welcome back, Chris Woakes.

1st over: Sri Lanka 12-1 (Perera 0, Fernando 4) Quite the eventful start. Wides that beat the keeper, two runs off the scoop for Oshada Fernando, the boundary, the wicket. Sri Lanka ahead of the run rate, at least?

This is what David Willey does! Strikes in the Powerplay. First over, second ball. Gunathilaka drives the first through the covers in classical left-handed style. The second though, a bit short, some bounce, a bit of outward movement into the bargain, and Eoin Morgan was smart enough to have two slips in for Willey’s early movement, if you will. Malan at second pouches the catch off the shoulder.

A finish with a flourish for England. 17 runs from the final over. It’s been a fun day with the stick for the home team. Big opening stand, a rattle of wickets in the middle, but they closed well. Sri Lanka will need 9 an over to win, that’s a tall order given England’s bowling variety and firepower. Chase coming shortly.

20th over: England 180-6 (Curran 9, Jordan 9) Udana goes the short route to Curran for the final over. Not sure about that. It almost gets wickets, but it also costs runs. Four, as Curran bangs over square leg for four via a misfield from a near catch. Two more, as he’s nearly caught at wide long on, but it bounces short. Two more as he pulls in ungainly style. Gets a leg bye to lose the strike.

Jordan faces. Low full toss. Scorching cover drive for four! That’s just about the shot of the day. Gorgeous. So good he does it twice! Squarer the second time, and ends the innings with consecutive boundaries.

19th over: England 163-6 (Curran 1, Jordan 0) One over to go for England’s lower order to swing. Sri Lanka have done well to suppress the potential score.