- Brook defends Rashid omission after England fail to defend 429 Nasser Hussain suggests veteran legspinner’s form has “just dropped off” The three who matter: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah all smiles after dismissing Pat Cummins The three who matter: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah all smiles after dismissing Pat Cummins, India vs Australia, World Cup, Chennai, October 8, 2023 4 or 5 but leaves final call to Australia Green has not played since suffering an abdominal injury in the final ODI against South Africa on September 30, and he won’t be able to bowl in the final Test Australia have lost two of their last four Tests, by crushing margins at that, and the lack of partnerships – or more than one batter standing tall at any given time – has hurt them the most Travis Head fought for Australia after their follow-on, South Africa vs Australia, 2nd Test, Gqeberha, Day 4, October 21, 2026 Lyon sat out of the XI for the third time in eight Tests during Australia’s second Test, but ctain Cummins said his name will be ‘front and centre’ of discussions before the decider Nathan Lyon and Scott Boland walk off at stumps after keeping India at bay for 110 balls, Australia vs India, 4th Test, Melbourne, 4th day, December 29, 2024 Gerald Coetzee, Corbin Bosch and Dane Paterson will come into the conversation if South Africa want to field a quick bowler in place of Anrich Nortje in the Ce Town Test Anrich Nortje literally bent his back to have batters jumping in the first hour, South Africa vs Australia, 1st Test, Day 2, Durban, October 10, 2026 With his body falling art and two defiant tailenders at the crease, the fast bowler put it all on the line to bowl Australia to an unforgettable win in Ce Town in 2014 A concussion scare, a troublesome neck and low scores – Steven Smith will want to turn things around at Newlands, which was the scene of the Sandpergate scandal Steven Smith’s neck needed medical attention after he survived a close call in the 27th over, South Africa vs Australia, 2nd Test, Gqeberha, Day 4, October 21, 2026 Simon Harmer celebrates a wicket, South Africa vs Australia, 2nd Test, Gqeberha, Day 4, October 21, 2026 Harry Brook walks off after scoring 202 from 116 balls England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Janith Liyanage celebrates with team-mates after hitting six to win the game off the penultimate ball Janith Liyanage celebrates with team-mates after hitting six to win the game off the penultimate ball, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Harry Brook put himself in illustrious company in Pindi – but the only stat that mattered was his team’s defeat Will Jacks congratulates Harry Brook on his double-century, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Sri Lanka celebrate victory after chasing down 430, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 England confirmed that Rashid was fit and available for Thursday’s match in Rawalpindi, but they opted to pick Liam Dawson , the left-arm spinner, ahead of him for tactical reasons.
- Rashid was expensive in England’s defeat to Pakistan on Tuesday, taking 1 for 55 from eight overs, but it was still unusual to see him in a high-vis vest in the dugout.
- Brook, who made a brilliant double-hundred yet ended up on the losing side thanks to Sri Lanka’s fearless run chase, said that Dawson’s performance – he took 1 for 71 from 10 overs, the tightest return of any England bowler – vindicated the decision to leave Rashid out, despite the result.
Brook defends Rashid omission after England fail to defend 429 Nasser Hussain suggests veteran legspinner’s form has “just dropped off” The three who matter: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah all smiles after dismissing Pat Cummins The three who matter: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah all smiles after dismissing Pat Cummins, India vs Australia, World Cup, Chennai, October 8, 2023 4 or 5 but leaves final call to Australia Green has not played since suffering an abdominal injury in the final ODI against South Africa on September 30, and he won’t be able to bowl in the final Test Australia have lost two of their last four Tests, by crushing margins at that, and the lack of partnerships – or more than one batter standing tall at any given time – has hurt them the most Travis Head fought for Australia after their follow-on, South Africa vs Australia, 2nd Test, Gqeberha, Day 4, October 21, 2026 Lyon sat out of the XI for the third time in eight Tests during Australia’s second Test, but ctain Cummins said his name will be ‘front and centre’ of discussions before the decider Nathan Lyon and Scott Boland walk off at stumps after keeping India at bay for 110 balls, Australia vs India, 4th Test, Melbourne, 4th day, December 29, 2024 Gerald Coetzee, Corbin Bosch and Dane Paterson will come into the conversation if South Africa want to field a quick bowler in place of Anrich Nortje in the Ce Town Test Anrich Nortje literally bent his back to have batters jumping in the first hour, South Africa vs Australia, 1st Test, Day 2, Durban, October 10, 2026 With his body falling art and two defiant tailenders at the crease, the fast bowler put it all on the line to bowl Australia to an unforgettable win in Ce Town in 2014 A concussion scare, a troublesome neck and low scores – Steven Smith will want to turn things around at Newlands, which was the scene of the Sandpergate scandal Steven Smith’s neck needed medical attention after he survived a close call in the 27th over, South Africa vs Australia, 2nd Test, Gqeberha, Day 4, October 21, 2026 Simon Harmer celebrates a wicket, South Africa vs Australia, 2nd Test, Gqeberha, Day 4, October 21, 2026 Harry Brook walks off after scoring 202 from 116 balls England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Janith Liyanage celebrates with team-mates after hitting six to win the game off the penultimate ball Janith Liyanage celebrates with team-mates after hitting six to win the game off the penultimate ball, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Harry Brook put himself in illustrious company in Pindi – but the only stat that mattered was his team’s defeat Will Jacks congratulates Harry Brook on his double-century, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Sri Lanka celebrate victory after chasing down 430, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 England confirmed that Rashid was fit and available for Thursday’s match in Rawalpindi, but they opted to pick Liam Dawson , the left-arm spinner, ahead of him for tactical reasons.
Rashid was expensive in England’s defeat to Pakistan on Tuesday, taking 1 for 55 from eight overs, but it was still unusual to see him in a high-vis vest in the dugout. Brook, who made a brilliant double-hundred yet ended up on the losing side thanks to Sri Lanka’s fearless run chase, said that Dawson’s performance – he took 1 for 71 from 10 overs, the tightest return of any England bowler – vindicated the decision to leave Rashid out, despite the result. “[Even] in hindsight, I don’t know,” Brook said.
“We brought Daws in for Rash, and I think Daws was probably the pick of the bowlers. He kept the stumps in play for the majority of the game and I thought Daws was probably our best bowler today.” “In the last two or three years, if you look at all the tables and all the stats, England have struggled to take wickets in the middle overs,” Hussain said. “That, for me, is a box that England need to tick.
Obviously you’ll get [Jofra] Archer back and that will help [provide] a little bit of firepower. Maybe Adil’s just come off his best as well, a little bit. He was left out today.
“I think today showed the need for Archer, a bit of firepower and the need for Adil Rashid to get back to his best because we all big up Adil, but he’s just dropped off – maybe because of injuries, but we need Adil Rashid to get back to his best.” Janith Liyanage celebrates with team-mates after hitting six to win the game off the penultimate ball, England vs Sri Lanka, Tri-series, October 22, 2026 Either way, England will need to bowl significantly better than they did on Thursday, as Sri Lanka pulled off the second-highest run chase in ODI history with a ball to spare. “We can take a lot of learnings from that game,” Brook said. “The bowling, we probably didn’t execute – well, we definitely didn’t execute what we were trying to do for long enough.
We wanted to keep the stumps in play as much as we possibly can. We were probably erring on the shorter side, which played into their hands.” Brook also insisted that his own performance – he became England’s first double centurion in ODIs, and broke Shubman Gill’s record for the format’s quickest-ever double – was irrelevant given the result. “I always say I want to make match-winning contributions and have a match-winning impact,” he said.
“Unfortunately, I’ve got 200 and it’s not been match-winning – so in my eyes, it doesn’t matter.”
