To surpass Sri Lanka’s 317 for 6, England would have needed to scale unsurpassed heights. They had never chased more than 306 to achieve victory; no side had won at the Premadasa Stadium with more than 286 to its name. Moeen’s 119 from 87 balls, the latest eye-catching performance in an outstanding start to his international career, kept the faith, but when he knocked back a soft return catch to Jeevan Mendis, sixth out at 203, England subsided.
Summarized scores: Sri Lanka 317 for 6 (Dilshan 88, Perera 59, Jayawardene 55) beat England 292 (Moeen 119, Bopara 65, T Perera 3-44)