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England captain Harry Brook produced a historic batting display on Thursday, smashing a record-breaking double century to guide his side to 429-4 against Sri Lanka in the Pakistan-hosted ODI tri-series.
Brook scored 202 off just 116 deliveries, hitting 21 fours and 10 sixes. He became the first England batter to score a double century in men’s One-Day International cricket and registered the fastest double hundred in the format.
The 27-year-old reached the milestone in 114 balls, breaking the previous record of 117 deliveries set by India’s Shubman Gill, who scored 223 against the West Indies.
Brook’s innings also surpassed Ben Stokes’s 182 against New Zealand in 2023, making it the highest individual ODI score by an England batter.
Brook’s extraordinary innings helped England post their highest ODI total in Pakistan. The previous record was 375-3, scored by Pakistan against Zimbabwe in 2015.
England’s 429-4 also ranked as the team’s fourth-highest total in ODI cricket.
Brook became only the third player, alongside India’s Virender Sehwag and West Indies great Chris Gayle, to score both a double century and a triple century in international cricket.
His 202 was the 14th double century in men’s ODI history. It was also the fourth-highest individual score by a captain in the format.
Only Gill’s unbeaten 223, Sehwag’s 219 and Rohit Sharma’s unbeaten 208 were higher scores by captains, according to the supplied match statistics.
Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis elected to field first at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. However, England’s batters dominated the innings and maintained an aggressive scoring rate throughout.
Openers Tom Banton and Ben Duckett gave England a strong start, adding 74 runs before left-arm spinner Dunith Wellalage dismissed both in successive overs.
Banton scored 51 off 50 balls, including nine fours. Duckett contributed 29 from 39 deliveries.
Brook then partnered with Joe Root to rebuild the innings. The pair added 159 runs for the third wicket, with both batters reaching half-centuries.
Root struck eight boundaries in his 69 off 66 balls. Asitha Fernando eventually ended the partnership with the first delivery of the 38th over.
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Brook continued his attack after Root’s dismissal, finding an ideal partner in Will Jacks.
The pair added 185 runs from just 77 deliveries for the fourth wicket, pushing England beyond the 400-run mark and putting Sri Lanka’s bowlers under sustained pressure.
Jacks remained unbeaten on 60 off 33 balls, hitting eight fours and three sixes.
Brook was dismissed by Janith Liyanage from the final delivery of the innings. His departure ended a remarkable knock that rewrote England’s ODI record books.
Wellalage finished as Sri Lanka’s leading wicket-taker, claiming 2-56 from his 10 overs. Fernando and Liyanage took one wicket each.
England’s imposing total leaves Sri Lanka facing a challenging chase as the tri-series continues in Pakistan.
