Sri Lanka answered collectively. Pavan Rathnayake anchored the chase with 130 off 106, Avishka Fernando and Dasun Shanaka fell agonisingly short of centuries with 97 apiece, and Janith Liyanage’s unbeaten 61 off 27 balls finished the job, the winning six coming off the penultimate ball. The match produced 859 runs, the second-highest aggregate in ODI history. Brook became the first batter to score an ODI double century in a losing cause: individual brilliance undone by collective failure.Pakistan’s own campaign has produced a performance worthy of the occasion. Against England, Arafat Minhas made 59 and then took six for 40 as Pakistan defended 302 to win by 87 runs. Such all-round contributions are encouraging as Pakistan assemble a squad for the 2027 World Cup in South Africa, where conditions will demand pace, accuracy and bounce. The pace battery of Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah has shown........

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