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England beat Sri Lanka by five wickets in fifth ODI

England defeat Sri Lanka by five wickets to claim victory in the fifth one-day international in Pallekele.

Joe Root scored a century to help England see off Sri Lanka by five wickets to claim victory in the fifth one-day international in Pallekele this afternoon.

With Thursday being a reserve day, play was allowed to resume after yesterday's action was postponed due to rain.

England required 240 to beat their opponents, but it was a poor start for the openers as Moeen Ali was the first to go after hitting just four runs.

Sachithra Senanayake bowled out Ali and shorty afterwards he was celebrating sending captain Alastair Cook back to the pavilion, with the batsman hitting 20 runs off 30 balls.

James Taylor and Root led the attack following England's early wobble and were able to keep Sri Lanka's bowlers at bay.

Taylor managed to reach a half-century, but his partnership with Root was eventually scrapped when Thisara Perera got him caught out on 68.

Ravi Bopara racked up 28 runs before being holed out to leave England needing a further 15 from 14 balls, while Eoin Morgan (5) was caught at mid-on to leave the tourists now needing two more runs.

Victory was secured when Root managed to complete his century, making 104 not out from 117 balls to see out the fifth Test, pulling the seven-match series back to 3-2 in Sri Lanka's favour.

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Danielle Joynson
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Sri Lankan cricketer Lahiru Thirimanne plays a shot during the fourth One Day International (ODI) match between Sri Lanka and England at the R. Premadasa Cricket Stadium in Colombo on December 7, 2014
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