RESULT
4th ODI, Lord's, May 31, 2014, Sri Lanka tour of England and Ireland
(50 ov, T:301) 293/8

Sri Lanka won by 7 runs

Player Of The Match
121 (74)
jos-buttler
New
ENG
Full commentary
end of over 504 runs • 2 wickets
ENG: 293/8CRR: 5.86 
James Tredwell1 (2b)
James Anderson0 (0b)
Lasith Malinga 10-2-52-3
Nuwan Kulasekara 10-0-81-0

7pm: We've had a Lord's Saturday to savour, a close match at last and two marvellous, contrasting hundreds. You can read all about it, whilst straightening your clothes and rearranging your hair, in Andrew McGlashan's match report. The win-lose sequence continues, though I doubt we can rely on that for a prediction... Join us again to see which way the dice fall in Birmingham. For now, it's goodnight from Alex and me. Cheerio!

6.50pm: Right, presentations time, starting with England captain Alastair Cook: "It was looking pretty bleak before those two got going. When you're chasing 300 at Lord's, it's hard to defend, we couldn't quite get going but Jos showed what a special player he is. When you lose wickets in the first couple of overs you have to do some rebuilding, we know we have to play those first 30 overs better if we're going to chase down 300. Can't fault the commitment of the lads and we'll have a one-off game now to decide the series. The pitch didn't do as much as we thought it might but we did well to keep them to 300. It's a question of balance, if you want five frontline bowlers or some part time; when it comes off, we're happy. We're disappointed to be on the losing side but we'll go to Edgbaston confident."

Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews: "That was one hell of a game. Tillakaratne and Sangakkara set the platform but we fell away a bit in the middle. Jos's innings was one of the best I've seen, he played brilliantly. The spinners did well, Malinga and Kulasekara are the most experienced guys in our bowling and that paid off at the end. We had to raise our hands up [after making 67] and score those runs, we know that if we get 250 we have the bowlers to defend it. We can take a lot of positives from here for the deciding match."

Jos Buttler was named Man of the Match: "That's the best I've ever played, it was brilliant to play that well but really disappointed not to get over the line. Me and Ravi had some fun, we knew we were miles behind and it gave us licence, the partnership built and then we thought we had the game but we lost Ravi and couldn't quite finish it. It showed how hard it was to stop the scoring if you got a partnership going but there's always areas you can improve and we'll try and put them into place for Edgbaston. Kulasekara bowled a really good penultimate over and that put extra pressure on the final over from Malinga. [Test] is a different format, so it's about trying to improve every day and see where that gets me."

6.40pm: We've had an absolute corker here today, credit to Malinga for holding his nerve at the end and denying the romantics a helluva story. Jos Buttler's century - off 61 balls, the fastest by an Englishman in ODIs - came within an ace of winning the game from another magnificent ton, that of Kumar Sangakkara, whose 112 underpinned what turned out to be a match-winning score of 300. This is the fifth time in ODIs that both keepers have scored hundreds, and the third involving Kumar. England were 10 for 2 and 111 for 5 in the 29th over but a stand of 133 between Buttler and Ravi Bopara, the highest for the sixth wicket at Lord's, had the visitors breathing into a paper bag. In the end, they weren't quite able to emulate India on this ground a dozen years ago but it was a similarly memorable match. And it means we'll get a series decider at Edgbaston on Tuesday, too.

49.6
1
Malinga to Tredwell, 1 run

low full toss this time, clubbed along the ground to mid-on, collected without drama... and that means Sri Lanka win by 7 runs and level the series at 2-2

49.5
Malinga to Tredwell, no run

goes full and very wide, adjudged inside the tramlines and that's the match, folks

James Tredwell on strike... a six and a four will do it

49.4
W
Malinga to Buttler, OUT

superb yorker, dug out but only a yard or two off the strip, Malinga fetches it and Buttler is stranded! Buttler is run out after making a quite sensational hundred but it won't be enough for England... Malinga knows his way around squeaky bum time, that's for sure, he fired this in full and then was smart enough to collect and finish the job with Buttler indecisive and Tredwell already alongside him

Jos Buttler run out (Malinga) 121 (74b 11x4 4x6 102m) SR: 163.51
49.3
2
Malinga to Buttler, 2 runs

up in the blockhole, Buttler manages to chop it down the ground and they gamble on a second, to keep Buttler facing, the throw wasn't great and Sangakkara had to leap to his right to break the wicket, missed first time and by the time he did, Buttler was home

Out comes James Tredwell but the batsmen crossed, Buttler is on strike

49.2
W
Malinga to Jordan, OUT

pitched up and swung down the ground - straight to long-on! Struck firmly but Dilshan was lurking in the deep, he takes the catch and starts whooping it up, encouraging the Sri Lankans in the ground. They're getting closer

Chris Jordan c Dilshan b Malinga 5 (10b 0x4 0x6 24m) SR: 50
49.1
1
Malinga to Buttler, 1 run

full and wide of the stumps, Buttler swings like a lumberjack but can only squirt a single to mid-off

end of over 498 runs
ENG: 289/6CRR: 5.89 RRR: 12.00
Jos Buttler118 (71b 11x4 4x6)
Chris Jordan5 (9b)
Nuwan Kulasekara 10-0-81-0
Lasith Malinga 9-2-48-2

Buttler keeps the strike... but he's got the master facing him. England need a couple of boundaries against a man who makes his money grinding up mortals at the death

48.6
1
Kulasekara to Buttler, 1 run

ice-cool stuff from Kulasekara, pitched up again and there's only a single down the ground on off

48.5
1
Kulasekara to Jordan, 1 run

full and straight, Jordan digs a single out down the ground

48.4
1
Kulasekara to Buttler, 1 run

full again, doesn't get hold of this in the same way, still gets a single into the covers

48.3
4
Kulasekara to Buttler, FOUR runs

steps away, Kula pitches full outside leg... and Buttler smashes him through the covers for four! Brutal power and somehow he managed to manufacture the angle

48.2
1
Kulasekara to Jordan, 1 run

pitched up in the blockhole again, Jordan bunts a single to long-on

48.1
Kulasekara to Jordan, no run

canny bowling, full and just outside off and Jordan swings and misses, there's an appeal for caught behind but they'll settle for keeping him on strike

Well, Mathews is not putting himself on the line - Kula it is

end of over 4810 runs
ENG: 281/6CRR: 5.85 RRR: 10.00
Jos Buttler112 (68b 10x4 4x6)
Chris Jordan3 (6b)
Lasith Malinga 9-2-48-2
Ajantha Mendis 10-0-60-2

A handy dot ball there, England still need 10 an over... They may want to target the next one. On that subject, here's Adrian Meredith: "Mathews has to bowl the 49th over. Kulasekera is having a terrible day with the ball and can't be risked."

47.6
Malinga to Buttler, no run

takes the pace off and Buttler turns the wrists, clips firmly but straight to midwicket

47.5
1
Malinga to Jordan, 1 run

good length on the stumps, Jordan calmly works a single to square leg

Jordan on strike... Malinga rejigs things

47.4
1
Malinga to Buttler, 1 run

slower delivery again, cross-batted down the ground but there's just a single to long-on

47.3
2
Malinga to Buttler, 2 runs

takes the pace of, worked into the leg side, deep mdiwicket hares in but Jordan hares back for a second

47.2
4
Malinga to Buttler, FOUR runs

another boundary, down the ground! Malinga went very full but there's such power in the Buttler blade, he dug this out and it whistled past mid-off and away

47.1
2
Malinga to Buttler, 2 runs

slower ball outside off, opens the face and steers a couple past backward point

Malinga back on, this is the crucial match-up now... Are you sitting uncomfortably?

end of over 476 runs
ENG: 271/6CRR: 5.76 RRR: 10.00
Jos Buttler103 (63b 9x4 4x6)
Chris Jordan2 (5b)
Ajantha Mendis 10-0-60-2
Nuwan Kulasekara 9-0-73-0

In light of the, frankly disturbing, comments I'm receiving, here's Aman Parikh: "Everyone is so excited about Vaughan, people are forgetting that an interesting match is going on ;)"

46.6
1
Mendis to Buttler, 1 run

drops slightly short and wide, Buttler hammers a cut shot ... but straight to the cover fielder, though a misfield allows them to take one and get back on strike

46.5
2
Mendis to Buttler, 2 runs

full again, scuffed into the leg side for another couple

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