News about Sanath Jayasuriya

BOOTH BOOTH: Surrey's Alistair Brown was selected to open for England in a one-day series against India in 1996. One national newspaper branded him a "clown" after starting with a hit-and-miss 37 off 52 balls at The Oval and called him a "clown." 'Unicycle' and'red nose' were also mentioned. Brown's offence was to shoot a few shots in keeping with the recent World Cup in South Asia, where Sanath Jayasuriya had pinch-hit Sri Lanka all the way to the trophy. Even though Brown made a century against India three days later at Old Trafford, where he was named player of the match, English cricket was not in the mood for such frivolity. It was his last ODI for 18 months. He played a few games after that, but he died a premature death - a singular talent sacrificed on the altar of mistrust.

When England's unloved one-day series in Australia came to a conclusion today, they lost by 221 runs, the heaviest defeat in their history. The contrast with the T20 World Cup final at the same venue nine days ago may not have been more telling than England's batsmen who fell to 142 for five out of 48 overs in reaction to the Australians' ferocious 355 for five from 48 overs.