END OF OVER:27 | 5 Runs | ENG: 132/2 | RR: 4.88
- Eoin Morgan31 (34b)
- Joe Root32 (57b)
- Dhananjaya de Silva4-0-18-0
- Lasith Malinga5-0-15-0
5.03pm So, that'll do. England are 3-0 series winners. Can Sri Lanka steal a consolation win against what Morgan has hinted might be a bit of a rejigged team in Colombo on Tuesday? See you then. In the meantime, Chelsea-Man Utd is just getting underway...
Eoin Morgan is Man of the Match for the manner in which he guided the run-chase, and marshalled his bowlers... "Flattering," he says. "Today was a scrappy game, the wicket was a bit tacky, we let Sri Lanka creep up to a very competitive score. Credit to Sri Lanka, they fought back well, with their two spinners. They didn't get too far away from us in the last 10. We were trying to be cagey with the rain all day. Our two best bowlers were Adil and Moeen so I bowled them out as quickly as I could. Woakesy has been incredible in the powerplay, we're learning more about Olly Stone and Tom Curran has been outstanding."
Dinesh Chandimal: "We played some outstanding cricket. We can take the positives and are looking forward to the next game. 274 is a winning total, and unfortunately the rain came. You can't say every time when you are losing a game you made a mistake, we are a young unit and will learn quickly."
Match abandoned Nothing left to see here...
Lindsay O'Regan: "This seemingly meaningless, pointless tour has been very important to England. They've taken a big step towards being able to adapt and not be phased by the unexpected, uncertainty or adversity. They've looked in control in every match despite pitches not being to their liking, the permanent threat of rain, the loss of Dawson, a key player in these conditions. They're learning how to win from anywhere. But, this is England and I may just be dreaming. If I am, please don't wake me up until 2020"
Sharan: "some perspective please. england are beating a SL team that's very very poor. and are missing mathews. even with mathews they're playing awful. england beat an australia B side, and beat india 2-1 but india were without bhuvi and bumrah.. still waiting for england to face a strong team." Leaving aside the obvious, they did win 4-1 in Australia earlier this year. Which wasn't to be sniffed at...
4.24pm Stuart: "Credit where credit's due, the Monsoon has performed consistently this series. Right on cue, he's come on executed his skills and hit the right areas and all that." The ultimate finisher. Arrives on cue, leaves no room for equivocation. Brutal power and timing.
Denis Crampton: "MoM? Shanaka of course! Without his contribution there wouldn't have *been* a real match." You've got a point ...
Rathan: "Hi did you guys notice that Aussie women's team and the Sri Lankan's equally finished 273/7 .." Certainly did, Slight difference in the final result though ...
4.15pm It's not officially all over yet ... but it's only a matter of time surely. Frankly you'd be better off popping off to watch the football, which I'm sure is what the England players will be doing right now. ESPNFC's coverage of Chelsea-Man Utd is just about to get underway.
James : "Soham Basal I think a lot of Jurgen Klopp's comments about football being a year round sport and the need for players to rest also apply to cricket. " Too right. And this series knocks his criticism of the Nations League into a cocked hat!
Imran Master: "What if rain stops and there is a chance of 29 over match with target already achieved by England ? Do they come and play 2 overs ?" Funnily enough, I do believe that happened once before in an England game. The point being, of course, that it would still be possible to lose enough wickets to turn the DLS back in the bowling team's favour.
4pm Right, it is absolutely hacking it down in Pallekele. If we get any more play tonight, then I will ... err ... do something careless with my dignity.
Adrian: "Whoopsie daisy! I was off by almost 4 hours with my prediction of the biblical deluge. Ah well, weather forecasting is a humbling science. What is highly predictable though is the result - England winning another match. Happy! "
3.56pm Steve: "Sri Lanka typical of a team that is struggling for both form and probably skill level at the moment. Play badly, get absolutely smashed. Play OK, still lose comfortably. Play well, and you do something stupid to mess it up anyway." So true ... it's a long old haul when you are stuck in a rut
Soham Basak: "@James : You think ECB has scheduling problems? Look at India, they play all year - sun, rain, hail or snow. There were IPL matches held in a drought hit state this year."
3.53pm Fidel is not hopeful of a resumption, and I can't say I blame him.
James : "SLC: "Surely no one would be stupid enough to hold an ODI series in the middle of the monsoon season". ECB: "Hold my CAMRA approved real ale"." Yep. Address all correspondence to Lord's Cricket Ground, NW8 8QZ
lakhan13: "I had been on another website to read the commentary and came back to see what have i messed, its the magic of comments of alan and andrew!!! DAMN CRICKET IS SO DIFFERENT HERE." Welcome back Lakhan, we missed you too. Beware imitations ...
3.50pm It is now hosing down ... and you have to say, the monsoon is nothing if not punctual. The rain arrived at 3.50-something pm in each of the first two games. Virgin Trains could learn from this scheduling.
Liaquat Ali: "Your Man of the match if the game doesn't restart?" Difficult call, isn't it? I guess Moeen was the pivotal bowler, but no-one really stands out today. Which is a measure of Engand's team dynamic at the moment.
Rain stopped play. The umpires know that the deluge is imminent. They've given the groundstaff a chance to get the pitch covered before things get messy.
So, for clarity's sake, England are currently 18 runs ahead on DLS - the current par score is 114. That would have been rather dicier if Root had not been reprieved on a fielding technicality a few overs ago...
Nikhil : "A DLS par score of 110 after 26 overs in a chase of 273 seems ridiculous to me. So unfair to the bowling side. " It's all to do with wickets in hand. That requirement rises exponentially as the wickets run out
END OF OVER:26 | 3 Runs | ENG: 127/2 (147 runs required from 24 overs, RR: 4.88, RRR: 6.12)
- Eoin Morgan27 (30b)
- Joe Root31 (55b)
- Lasith Malinga5-0-15-0
- Dhananjaya de Silva3-0-13-0
The 12th man has just run a message out to the Sri Lankan fielders. Presumably DLS-related. And the groundstaff are now getting busy...
Wishwanath: "It's raining cats and dogs here in Matale. Expect the same within half an hour"
Bharat Thej: "All srilanka need now is to convert these half chances and put pressure on england. It looks like a cake walk for now."
END OF OVER:25 | 5 Runs | ENG: 124/2 (150 runs required from 25 overs, RR: 4.96, RRR: 6.00)
- Joe Root29 (53b)
- Eoin Morgan26 (26b)
- Dhananjaya de Silva3-0-13-0
- Lasith Malinga4-0-12-0
SalmanRazeen: "I'm about 15 KM away from the ground and it's pelting over here, hope it won't get over there and spoil the game." I fear it will. But it's exciting for the moment...
107 would be the par score at the end of this over. Lose one wicket, it would go up to 121, and two wickets would be 139... so crucial