Less than a year ago, Harry Brook was wondering if he might be sacked as England’s white-ball captain and what damage he had done to his international career. Twelve months on, he is undeniably England’s most important cricketer — and probably the best all-format batter in the world.
Harry Brook’s stunning 202 against Sri Lanka (Credits: BBC Sport)
Brook’s 202 in England’s defeat against Sri Lanka was a staggering display of stroke-making — drawing comparisons to the innings once played by South African genius AB de Villiers. It was the first double hundred by an Englishman in an ODI, passing Ben Stokes’ 182 against New Zealand in 2023, and in reaching 200 in just 114 balls, Brook recorded the fastest ODI double ton ever, beating Shubman Gill’s 117-ball effort from last month.
Brook’s Record-Breaking ODI Double Century
The innings put Brook in one of international cricket’s most exclusive clubs: with a T20 hundred, an ODI double hundred, and a Test triple century to his name, he has matched the previously unique treble of West Indies legend Chris Gayle. But Brook the captain was left dejected — he is the first man ever to score an ODI double ton and end up on the losing side, as Sri Lanka pulled off the second-highest run chase in ODI history.
Best All-Format Batter in the World?
The numbers across formats are absurd. Ranked the ICC’s best Test batter in the world, Brook averages 53.08 — no England player with 20+ innings since 1968 beats him, not Joe Root, not Alastair Cook, not Geoffrey Boycott. In T20Is he averages 36.21 at a strike rate of 164.92 — no batter with 20+ innings for a major nation tops both numbers. In ODIs he averages nearly 50 across his last 29 matches and almost 57 in 2026 alone.
Captaincy suits him: he averages 31 runs more in ODIs as captain than without the armband. Perhaps only Australia’s Travis Head can challenge him for the all-format crown — and Ben Stokes reportedly told him at the end of the Ashes that he should be averaging 60 or more in Tests.
Also Read: Harry Brook Smashes Fastest Ever ODI Double Century (202) as England Pile Up 429/4 vs Sri Lanka | Sloppy England Start Winter With 87-Run Defeat to Pakistan in Rawalpindi ODI
Source: BBC Sport — read the full story there.
