The Colombo pitch once again became the biggest talking point in the Sri Lanka-England ODI series, with Harry Brook’s remarks sparking a strong reaction from Angelo Mathews. The surface used for the second ODI was dry, cracked, and clearly built to assist spin.
As the match went on, the ball gripped, turned sharply, and made stroke-making difficult. England struggled with the bat, with only Joe Root managing to hit a fifty as Sri Lanka’s spinners dictated terms. Sri Lanka had already taken the lead in the series with a 19-run win in the first ODI at the same venue—R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
Harry Brook’s pitch criticism raises eyebrows
Despite England bouncing back to level the ongoing three-match ODI series with a five-wicket win over Sri Lanka in Colombo, Brook’s strong criticism of the pitch raised eyebrows.
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The England captain had said at the post-match presser, “It’s nice to get a win away from home. On a tough surface, but we’re happy to get the victory. Probably the worst pitch I’ve ever played on, and you had to go out there and adapt as quickly as possible and just try and get off strike and get the other batter on strike.”
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His comments did not go down well, especially given the long-standing debate around how subcontinent pitches are judged compared to seaming tracks overseas.
Harry Brook fuels fresh pitch debate in ODI series decider
With the series locked at 1–1, both teams moved into the third and final ODI at the R. Premadasa Stadium on the same strip used for the first ODI.
This time, the pitch has been carefully prepared but still shows cracks and dry patches, hinting at slow conditions and plenty of spin. And Brook could not control his emotions, adding fuel to the fire by yet again slamming the Colombo pitch.
Harry Brook said at the toss on Tuesday, January 27: “We’d like a nice pitch, but I don’t think it’s going to be a nice pitch, so we will have to adapt. (On what he thinks is a good pitch) High-scoring, with the ball flying around. (No Turn?) Yeah… Our spinners have to adapt to the conditions, and so do our batters, and we will try and put up a good score.”
Pitch war erupts in Colombo as Angelo Mathews fires back at Harry Brook
Following the English batter’s latest attack on the Colombo surface, former Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews responded strongly, calling out for the double standards. He mentioned how turning pitches are often labelled poor, while green and seam-friendly surfaces are praised as challenging and fair.
Taking a dig at Harry Brook, the former all-rounder also made it clear that truly bad pitches are those that are unsafe, unpredictable, or dangerous, not ones that simply test technique.
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Angelo Mathews posted, X: “So, the big talk about bad wickets! Can someone explain to me the definition of a bad wicket? When Asian countries play overseas and when the wicket has lots of grass, movement, and seam, it’s a “sporty” wicket, but in the subcontinent, when it turns, it’s called a terrible wicket? To me bad wickets are ones that take off a good length and can harm the batters or are dangerous to play on!”
So the big talk about bad wickets! Can someone explain to me the definition of a bad wicket? When Asian countries play overseas and when the wicket has lots of grass,movement and seam it’s a “sporty” wicket but in the subcontinent when it turns it’s call terrible wickets?To me…
— Angelo Mathews (@Angelo69Mathews) January 27, 2026
