That really was a tale of two innings.
England’s first ODI in Sri Lanka showed us a Kusal Mendis smooth operation that Sade herself would be proud of, to lead the Lankans to an unforseen 271-6 with an unbeaten 93. And that was only to be followed by a wrath of spinner imposition wrapped in cute-as-a-button like pretty paper in the form of Dhananjaya de Silva, captain Charith Asalanka, and Dunith Wellalage, among others.
Sri Lankan spin was like a tornado for England’s batters
No doubt, it’s early days. But they were like an alpha on the hunt. If world beaters like Joe Root and Jos Buttler are succumbing to the dainty fingers of the people belonging to the Pearl of the Indian Ocean, the Three Lions better call their Houston – because there’s a definite problem brewing in their middle order.
Colombo’s treacherous conditions required them to just have a good hold of the game till they were halfway through, after which the pitch’s dew and city’s humidity would’ve made the softer white ball hard to grip for bowlers.
And just as you know it, 30 overs in, and it looked like their brave charge towards their first infinity stone of the three-match series was proving fruitful. Root and Ben Duckett were steaming forward with an 88-run partnership, having England stable at 129-1 in 27 overs.
But Duckett’s wicket was the near-billionth deja vu the English had, with their middle order collapsing like a deck of cards yet again, this time in the face of Sri Lankan bowling. Wellalage and Pramod Madhushan joined forces to send Brendon McCullum back to the drawing board with 2/41 and 3/39 figures each.
How? Well, a span of 12.2 overs saw them go from 129-2 to 144-3, 157-4, 159-5, and finally, 165-6 in the 37th over. The Lanks didn’t have to, but getting them bowled out for 252 in 49.2 overs was just the icing on the cake. Can’t blame the pitch for that now, can we?
So, what does the future hold for Brendon McCullum and England ?
Bazball was built on the grounds of courageous and bold risk-taking with no worry of the repercussions. But now’s when people demand answers. Not because of Baz himself entirely; the players deserve their own criticism for it.
“Sri Lanka played a very good game and deserved the victory,” said Harry Brook when interviewed by the BBC. “We bowled really well through the middle. Spinners bowled exceptionally well. But they got hold of us in the last over – but that’s part of one-day and white-ball cricket. They’ve got extremely good spinners who were able to get enough out of the surface. They challenged us in a lot of different departments.”
So scrutiny stays on McCullum in the hotseat. Will he stay? Will he go? Or will the board give him the Brook treatment and give him another chance to prove himself, at least till the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup? Who really even knows at this point. What’s for certain is for the board to figure out how mend fences with their staff before the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in February 2026, hosted by India and Sri Lanka.
He’s open to staying unless he sees proof of better alternatives for both parties. “I’m open to evolution and some nipping and tucking, but without being ultimately able to steer the ship maybe there is someone better,” he said to BBC. Those changes have already begun to take shape, with Carl Hopkinson brought in on a short-term gig as a fielding coach a while back.
Former head coach Matthew Mott was fired despite a semi-final run in the previous T20 World Cup in 2022. What does current head coach Brendon McCullum have to do to keep his job post that as well?
