Hosts Sri Lanka went down again in the third T20I against England as the batting collapsed and wilted under pressure. A game which Sri Lanka should have won was lost as the hosts found ways of losing another game to England their 11th consecutive loss to the visitors. This was a winnable game for Sri Lanka and for much of it they looked like winning it. But lack of application, self belief and poor decision making cost them the game as England kept believing and won a game they had no business winning to complete the whitewash. We will try and decipher three reasons for their loss in third T20I.
Losing 6/26 in the last 7 overs sealed the fate for Sri Lanka.Â
Sri Lanka bowled really well to keep England down to 128 on a used surface as Dushmantha Chameera picked up a 5-wicket haul on his comeback to the side. 129 was gettable even on a used surface and Sri Lanka for much of the chase looked in control of proceedings. Yes, there were people getting starts and getting out but things seemed to be under control. Kamil Mishara went early while Pathum Nissanka got a start and was looking good before he threw his wicket away.
But the Lankans managed to get two decent partnerships one between Pavan Rathnayake and Kusal Mendis which was worth 28 and then after 2 wickets fell off Rathnayake and Mendis, Kamindu and Janith Liyanage put on another 28-run stand to keep Sri Lanka ahead in the chase. Sri Lanka were decently placed at 90/4 in 13 overs needing 39 runs off 42 balls. But then the floodgates opened after Kamindu fell to Will Jacks. All Sri Lanka needed was a good sensible batting but they created chaos.
Wickets started to fall one after another as Liyanage fell soon after and then Jacob Bethell’s triple strike in the 18th over sealed the deal as Sri Lanka collapsed from 90/4 in 13 overs to 116 all out in 19.3 overs. There is a pattern for Sri Lanka in collapses as if Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis do not score runs then they collapse like a pack of cards. All wickets were lost to spin as well in this collapse which is a big concern.
Sri Lanka might be playing at home but these collapses has been happening for the past year in this format. With World Cup on the horizon, this is a serious concern to be addressed as these frequent collapses from middle order could cost Sri Lanka big time.
Losing 7 wickets for 25 runs in 7.3 overs to part-timers Jacob Bethell and Will Jacks exposes Sri Lanka.Â
Sri Lanka’s problems against spin is nothing new as they have been one the most struggling sides against spin at home. The story was no different last night in Pallekele. 9 off the 10 wickets fell to spin alright but the main spinners Adil Rashid and Liam Dawson only got one wicket each and kept things tight. The main problem for Sri Lanka was the other two spinners who were part-timers but they turned out to be lethal on a used surface. This is really concerning for the home side.
Will Jacks picked wickets in the middle phase of the game as he got the 4th, 5th and 6th wicket of Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, and Janith Liyanage. These wickets broke the back of the chase for Sri Lanka and if that was not enough then Jacob Bethell came out of syllabus and cleaned up the tail. Bethell bowled his first two overs miserly and then in his third over which was the 18th over of the innings he picked up 3 wickets and then picked up the final wicket in the final over of the game. Sri Lanka were all at sea against them and did not have answers to these two part-timers.
Credit to both Bethell and Jacks for bowling well and doing their job on a used surface. But Sri Lanka falling like a heap to spinners and part-timers in this case should raise alarm bells in the Lankan camp. Their captain Dasun Shanaka said that their inability to play spin is a huge concern. With World Cup coming up and Sri Lanka playing at home could be an advantage or a disadvantage because they have to play spin better and not go out to part-timers. Yes, they might improve but this area of spin playing is something they should be worried about.
Dasun Shanaka holding himself back and coming at 8 backfires for the Lankans.Â
Captain Dasun Shanaka had a mixed day as captain. He shuffled his bowlers well but was wicketless in his 3 overs and gave away 23 runs. But it is his batting and batting position that raised eyebrows. As captain, Shanaka should have ideally come in at Number 6 and taken responsibility to guide the side home. He is a capable batter batting at 6. But for some reason or experimentation mode, he refused to come down the order and put onus on youngsters to win the game rather than take responsibility.
To put things into perspective, Sri Lanka were 0-2 down in the series and needed a win to avoid whitewash. So, winning was or should have been the most priority thing for the hosts. Instead, they chose to experiment and hoped they would get away with it but they didn’t. Shanaka should have taken more responsibility and come up the order and we are sure that would have helped Sri Lanka win the match. But it was not the case and whole credit to England for the win.
Going forward in the World Cup, we would like and recommend Dasun Shanaka to bat up the order and take responsibility and help his side win games. He is a capable batter and batting high in the order can help him control things and take pressure of the youngsters. Sri Lanka has the team for the conditions, but need to translate that into performances in the upcoming World Cup.
The stage is set for ICC T20 World Cup 2026 as England travel to Mumbai and Kolkata for their group fixtures while Sri Lanka will play their group matches in Sri Lanka in Colombo and Pallekele. A lot to ponder and look forward to for both teams in T20 World Cup 2026.
Also Read: SL vs ENG: 3 Reasons For Sri Lanka’s Heart-Breaking Loss In 2nd T20I