Sri Lanka pulled off the second-highest successful chase in ODI history, overhauling England's massive total of 429/4 with one ball to spare to register a thrilling two-wicket victory in the tri-series match in Rawalpindi.

The win, Sri Lanka's highest successful chase in ODIs, came despite England captain Harry Brook's 202 off 116 balls, the fastest double hundred in the format, and a start in which Sri Lanka lost their own captain, Kusal Mendis, run out at the non-striker’s end without facing a ball. From 24/2, Pavan Rathnayake (130 off 106), Avishka Fernando (97 off 83) and Dasun Shanaka (97 off 50) laid the base for the historic chase before Janith Liyanage finished it with an unbeaten 61 off 27.

In the end, it all came down to the final over bowled by Josh Tongue, with Sri Lanka needing eight runs with four wickets in hand. Liyanage took a single off the first ball, only for Tongue to bowl Dunith Wellalage and Eshan Malinga off successive deliveries and swing the game back in England’s favour. With six needed off the final two balls, Liyanage cleared the long-off boundary and sealed a historic win for his side with a six, much to the dismay of England who have now lost both their matches in the ongoing triseries.

Sri Lanka's chase began on a terrible note when Tongue bowled Kamindu Mendis in the fourth over. Kusal Mendis was then run out without facing a ball when Gus Atkinson deflected a drive from Avishka onto the stumps at the non-striker's end. Avishka and Rathnayake then added 166 off only 137 balls for the third wicket, not letting Sri Lanka fall too far behind the required run rate.

Avishka was caught and bowled by Overton three short of his hundred, but Rathnayake was then joined in the middle by Shanaka, the duo punishing England’s bowlers all around the ground while adding 133 off 79 balls. Shanaka survived two reviews, both overturned in his favour, and went after Sam Curran, who conceded 103 in his nine overs. By the 43rd over, Sri Lanka were in fact ahead of where England had been at the same stage.

Rathnayake reached his second ODI hundred off 87 balls in the 35th over before falling to Curran for 130. Shanaka, though, didn’t let the momentum slip away and hit three sixes in Curran’s next over. He, too, fell three short of a hundred, holing out in the deep off Tom Banton’s bowling.

Liyanage then did what he did, and his six to seal the win was a fitting end to an innings that had carried Sri Lanka through the last ten overs. The No. 6 batter walked in with 107 still needed off 58 balls, and when Shanaka fell in the 44th over, Sri Lanka needed 67 off the last six. Liyanage did not let the breakthrough stall the chase, taking 14 off Jamie Overton’s next over. He then took 19 off the 47th over bowled by Curran.

Put in to bat earlier, England reached a steady 74/0 before Dunith Wellalage removed Tom Banton for 50 and trapped Ben Duckett lbw in his back-to-back overs. Brook, coming in at No. 4, was 13 off 23 balls at one point, but two sixes off Kamindu Mendis in the 24th over set him off, with him and Joe Root adding 159 off 127 balls for the third wicket.

Root played the anchor, passing 8000 ODI runs on his way to 69, as Brook pulled and scooped seamers all around the ground. The veteran batter fell for 69 in the 38th over, caught at midwicket off Asitha Fernando, and what followed was the most brutal phase of the innings. Brook raced to a fourth ODI hundred off 81 balls two overs later, with Will Jacks (66* off 30) matching him at the other end as England took 185 off the last 13 overs.

Brook was dropped on 186 in the 49th over and made Sri Lanka pay, scooping Liyanage for four in the final over to become the first England batter to score an ODI double hundred. He fell off the last ball of the innings, caught at deep backward point, but his record-breaking effort wasn’t enough to guarantee a win for England on the night.

Brief scores: England 429/4 in 50 overs (Harry Brook 202; Dunith Wellalage 2-56) lost to Sri Lanka 430/8 in 49.5 overs (Pavan Rathnayake 130, Avishka Fernando 97, Dasun Shanaka 97, Janith Liyanage 61*; Josh Tongue 3-79, Sam Curran 2-103) by 2 wickets.