England women’s national cricket team made a dominant start to their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign after defeating Sri Lanka women’s national cricket team by 87 runs in the opening match of the tournament. England looked in complete control from the very beginning as Danni- Wyatt Hodge struck an unbeaten ton before the bowlers comfortably defended the massive target.
Danni-Wyatt Hodge ton floors Sri Lanka
England openers Amy Jones and Danni Wyatt-Hodge started the innings aggressively and immediately put Sri Lanka under pressure during the power play. The duo attacked loose deliveries regularly and kept the run rate moving above expectations.
Sri Lanka had a major opportunity to stop England early, but Danni Wyatt-Hodge received an important lifeline in the 3rd over when Kavisha Dilhari dropped her catch while the batter was on 12 runs. That moment eventually became one of the biggest turning points of the match as Danni- Wyatt-Hodge slowly settled into her innings and started dominating the bowlers.
The missed opportunities continued for Sri Lanka later in the innings as Harshitha Samarawickrama failed to hold onto another chance in the 9th over when Danni Wyatt-Hodge was batting on 54. England fully capitalised on those dropped catches and continued to attack throughout the innings.
Amy Jones played a composed knock of 53 runs from 38 deliveries and shared a huge opening stand of 135 runs in 13.4 overs with Danni Wyatt-Hodge before getting dismissed in the 14th over. Meanwhile, Danni Wyatt-Hodge produced a brilliant unbeaten century, scoring 105 runs from just 62 balls with the help of 13 fours and one six.
England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt added further pressure on Sri Lanka during the death overs with a quickfire unbeaten 46 off 22 balls. England collected runs consistently in the final overs and eventually finished with a massive total of 219/1 in 20 overs.
England Bowlers Dominate Sri Lanka’s Chase From The Beginning
Chasing a huge target of 220, Sri Lanka needed a strong power play, but England’s bowling attack never allowed the batters to settle. Lauren Bell struck early before Charlie Dean removed captain Chamari Athapaththu cheaply for only four runs.
Sri Lanka was reduced to 37/3 inside the first six overs, and the required run rate kept climbing rapidly after every wicket. Harshitha Samarawickrama tried to fight back with an aggressive 29 off 18 balls, while Nilakshi de Silva added 39 runs lower down the order, but England continued to remain in complete control.
Freya Kemp delivered the standout bowling performance for England after finishing with impressive figures of 4/22 in her four-over spell. Charlie Dean and Sophie Ecclestone picked up two wickets each, while Lauren Bell and Linsey Smith also contributed with one wicket apiece.
Sri Lanka were eventually bowled out for 132 in 19.6 overs as England secured a convincing victory to begin their Women’s T20 World Cup campaign on a high note.
Also Read:Â ICC Women’s T20 WC 2026: Defending Champions New Zealand Hopes To Retain Its Crown