England whitewash Sri Lanka to reach T20 world No 1

England beat Sri Lanka by eight wickets at Old Trafford on Saturday, 19 September to complete a 3-0 T20 series whitewash and move to No 1 in the world. In T20 cricket, each side faces 20 overs, and a whitewash means winning every match in the series. The result confirmed England's status at the top of the shortest format The Guardian.

The final game in Manchester was comfortable. England chased down their target with two wickets lost to finish the job in style. Captain Harry Brook scored 33 on the night and was later named player of the series.

The tone for the week had been set in the opener. England piled up 254-4 before bowling Sri Lanka out for 135 to win by 119 runs Reuters. Brook led the charge with an unbeaten 114 from 49 balls, striking 10 fours and six sixes. His hundred came off 42 balls, the joint-second fastest by an Englishman BBC.

White-ball coach Brendon McCullum praised Brook after the series was sealed. The praise keeps coming for good reason. Brook has now won 23 of his 26 completed games as England captain.

There was a notable face in the crowd at Old Trafford. Stephen Fleming, England's new Test coach, watched on as the white-ball side finished its business. The red-ball job is his, with McCullum now focused on the limited-overs teams.

Attention turns quickly. England were due to begin a three-match one-day series against Sri Lanka on Tuesday, 22 September. In one-day internationals each team bats for 50 overs, a middle ground between the hit-and-run of T20 and the long grind of a five-day Test.

What makes this stand out is the control. England did not just win three games. They won big early, then stayed ruthless to close it out, and Brook drove it from the front with bat and as captain.