England salvage pride in Lahore as McCullum backs Brook and Dawson after Sri Lanka win

Brendon McCullum believes England’s chastening tri-series in Pakistan has given his young one-day side valuable lessons, but he took heart from the character shown in their consolation win over Sri Lanka in Lahore. England looked in danger of a fourth straight defeat when Sri Lanka reached 300 for 5 after 40 overs in pursuit of 387, with Pavan Rathnayake again threatening to repeat his heroics from the 430-run chase in Rawalpindi. This time, however, England found the breakthroughs at the death. Liam Dawson finished with 4 for 49 in ten overs and helped close out the game. McCullum told Sky Sports the performance was very satisfying because England were under pressure again and this time found a way through. He said the tri-series was always about giving experience to players who lack a deep 50-over background, and he praised Harry Brook’s captaincy in particular. McCullum described Brook as one of the best tactical captains he has come across, praising his intelligence, leadership and ability to involve others in decision-making. He said Brook will have grown enormously from being thrust into high-pressure situations. England were gutted to miss the final after Sri Lanka’s win over Pakistan ended their mathematical chances, but McCullum insisted the tour remains part of the build-up to next year’s 50-over World Cup in South Africa. England now move to Australia for a warm-up match against Western Australia and three ODIs. Individual positives included Brook’s career-best 202 against Sri Lanka, Ben Duckett’s back-to-back hundreds, Tom Banton’s three fifties at the top and Dawson’s seven wickets at 21.42. Dawson was preferred to Adil Rashid for the final three games, and McCullum said conditions had probably gone against Rashid. He also noted that leg-spin had not played a major role across the tournament, where Pakistan’s Arafat Minhas topped the averages with nine wickets at 16.11, and stressed the need for England to remain adaptable and flexible in selection.