England will endure far tougher games than this if they are to add the T20 World Cup to the 50-over version they won two years ago. But as early-season statements go, the one made on Wednesday night by Eoin Morgan’s side could not have been clearer.
It wasn’t so much the result – an eight-wicket win with 17 balls to spare against a team who looked every inch the world’s eighth-best side in this format. What stood out instead was the manner of victory in the first of 12 white-ball internationals against Sri Lanka and Pakistan over the next four weeks.
England looked sharp and resourceful in the field, restricting the Sri Lankans to seven fours and three sixes during an underwhelming innings of 129 for seven. A total of 49 dot balls spoke volumes for their discipline.
Jos Buttler hit a brilliant 68 to help England to an emphatic T20 win over Sri Lanka
England reached Sri Lanka's total without much trouble, winning with 17 balls remaining
And by the time they lost their first wicket in the chase, with Jason Roy acrobatically caught at mid-off by Danushka Gunathilaka, England had 80 on the board in the 10th over. On his return to the side, Jos Buttler finished unbeaten on 68 off 55 deliveries, even if his winning single came courtesy of a drop by wicketkeeper Kusal Perera.
Comparisons between formats can be facile, but while England’s No 1 ranked T20 side were strutting their stuff in the Welsh capital, it was hard not to think back to the stuttering performance of Joe Root’s Test team against New Zealand across the border at Edgbaston. Red ball or white, a stroll in Sophia Gardens was just what English cricket needed.
Morgan has earmarked the next few weeks as a chance for fringe players to state their case for the autumn World Cup, which now looks likely to be shifted from Covid-hit India to the UAE. And that may lead to a small but significant change in strategy.
In India in March, a seam-friendly pitch in Ahmedabad meant England played only one frontline spinner throughout the five-match series, leaving Moeen Ali to carry the drinks. But the heat and pitches of the Middle East may demand a second spinner, and yesterday Liam Livingstone threw his hat
