Jos Buttler‘s fiery half-century helped England thrash Sri Lanka by 8 wickets with 62 balls to spare to clean sweep the series 3-0. Jos Buttler continued from where he left off in the previous couple of games and looked good on his home ground for sure. But it was the English bowlers who set this win up with an all-round bowling display led by Sonny Baker, who was one of three bowlers to take two wickets, while the others chipped in with a wicket each, and there were run-outs in the innings as Sri Lanka were restricted to 124 in 18.5 overs.
In reply, Jos Buttler’s fiery unbeaten half-century powered England forward and was ably supported by a blitz from captain Harry Brook, who made 33 off 21 balls as England completed the formalities inside 10 overs. Aneurin Donald made 13 off 6 balls as the Lankan bowlers looked clueless and listless out there with the ball in hand. England completed the series sweep without breaking a sweat.
All-round England bowling skittles Sri Lanka for 124 in 18.5 overs
Put into bat first, Pathum Nissanka and Lahiru Udara came out to open the batting for Sri Lanka while Sonny Baker had the new ball in hand for England. Sri Lanka got off to a quick start in the initial stage of the match courtesy of Pathum Nissanka, who looked in the zone. The opening duo put on 22 for the first wicket inside 2 overs before Udara fell for 10 off 7 balls with 2 fours to his name to Sonny Baker. Keeper-batter Kamil Mishara came out to bat next.
Nissanka looked in the zone and tried to forge a partnership with Mishara. The duo added 17 runs for the second wicket before Mishara fell for 2 off 5 balls to Will Jacks. Captain Charith Asalanka came out to bat next. At the end of the power play, Sri Lanka were 47/2, and the game was evenly poised at that stage. The duo of Nissanka and Asalanka added 13 runs for the third wicket before Nissanka, the set batter, fell for 36 off 24 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes to his name to Will Jacks.
Kamindu Mendis came out to bat next. Asalanka and Kamindu got together and forged a partnership worth 31 runs for the 4th wicket before Asalanka, the skipper, fell for 16 off 14 balls with one six to his name thanks to a run out. Dasun Shanaka came out to bat next. Shanaka and Kamindu tried to build another stand of note and added 24 runs for the 5th wicket before Shanaka fell for 12 off 13 balls with one six to his name to Liam Dawson. Wanindu Hasaranga came out to bat with the score at 107/5 in 14 overs.
Hasaranga and Kamindu added 7 more runs to the score before Kamindu fell for 35 off 28 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Jofra Archer as the set batter departed. Tharindu Ratnayake came out to bat next as the Lankans’ tail was exposed now. Just 5 runs were added to the score before Ratnayake fell for 3 off 8 balls to Jamie Overton, who cleaned him up. Eshan Malinga came out to bat next. Just one run was added to the score before Malinga fell for a silver duck to another run out.
Dilshan Madushanka came out to bat next. Just 4 runs were added to the total before Hasaranga fell for 7 off 6 balls, with one four to his name to Archer, as the batter got out by hit wicket. Nuwan Thushara came out to bat next. The score stayed at 124 when Madushanka was the last man out for a 5-ball duck to Baker yet again. Thushara remained unbeaten on 0 off 1 ball as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 124 in 18.5 overs. 3 extras were given by the fielding side.
For England, it was an all-round bowling display. Sonny Baker was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2/17 in 3.5 overs. Will Jacks finished with 2/31 in 4 overs. Jofra Archer finished with 2/23 in 3 overs. Liam Dawson finished with 1/17 in 2 overs. Jamie Overton finished with 1/15 in 4 overs. Adil Rashid gave away 21 runs in 2 overs. This meant England needed 125 runs to win off 20 overs to whitewash the series 3-0.
Jos Buttler’s fiery unbeaten half-century powered England to an 8-wicket win inside 10 overs
Chasing 125 for the win to complete the whitewash, keeper batter Jos Buttler and Aneurin Donald came out to open the batting for England while Nuwan Thushara had the ball in hand for Sri Lanka. England, as they always do, came out all guns blazing as the opening duo were quickly off the blocks. Much like Sri Lanka, the openers put on 22 inside 3 overs before Donald fell for 13 off 6 balls with 3 fours to his name to Tharindu Ratnayake. Captain Harry Brook came out to bat next.
From here on, it was one way traffic as the in-form duo of Buttler and Brook dominated the Sri Lankan bowling on a decent pitch. They tore apart and aced the power play phase as England managed to reach 82/1 in 6 overs of power play, and that killed the chase there and then. Buttler was brutal, and Brook was at his best as well. The duo just went about their way in a professional way post the power play and in the middle phase as well. Brook also was looking unstoppable.
The duo added 85 runs in double quick time and looked good to finish the game as well. But against the run of play, Brook was run out for 33 off 21 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name as he was run out by Hasaranga. Tom Banton came out to bat and did not face a ball at all. Buttler took charge and added 19 runs unbeaten off 5 balls as England romped home to the target in 9.4 overs.
Buttler remained unbeaten on 62 off 32 balls with 7 fours and 2 sixes to his name while Banton was unbeaten on 0 off 0 balls. 18 extras were gifted by Sri Lanka, and 17 of them were wides. England were 126/2 in 9.4 overs.
Sri Lankan bowlers had a hard day with the ball in hand and looked ineffective and less threatening. Tharindu Ratnayake picked up one wicket and finished with 1/28 in 2 overs. The rest remained wicketless. Nuwan Thushara finished with 0/29 in 2 overs. Dilshan Madushanka finished with 0/24 in 2 overs. Eshan Malinga finished with 0/34 in 1.4 overs. Wanindu Hasaranga finished with 0/11 in 2 overs. So, England thrash Sri Lanka by 8 wickets with 62 balls to spare. Sonny Baker was awarded the Player of the Match, while captain Harry Brook was awarded the Player of the Series and Player of the Summer as well.
What Lies Ahead
The T20I series is done and dusted, with England whitewashing Sri Lanka 3-0 and going to Number 1 in the T20I rankings, while Sri Lanka will be left to rue what might have been for them. Up next are the ODI series coming next week. These two teams are set to compete in a 3-match series in ODI format. The first ODI is set to be played at Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street, in Durham on Tuesday, 22nd September 2026 at 5 PM IST. Can Sri Lanka change their fortunes in ODIs? It doesn’t look like it at the moment.
Let’s see how that ODI series pans out for both teams.
Also Read: ENG vs SL: Harry Brook’s Brutal Ton Destroys Sri Lanka