Dunith Wellalage stole the show in all three facets of the game to help Sri Lanka upstage England in Colombo by 19 runs. Dunith Wellalage came out all guns blazing and surprised England from start to finish. After winning the toss and electing to bat first, Sri Lanka posted 271/6 in 50 overs thanks to Kusal Mendis’ unbeaten 93. But Wellalage played the perfect cameo of 25* off 12 balls including getting 23 runs in the final over bowled by Jamie Overton.
In the defence of the target, Dunith Wellalage kept things tight and picked up 2 important wickets and also pulled off a stunning catch of Rehan Ahmed at wide long-off of Vandersay while Jeffrey Vandersay also picked up two wickets while Pramod Madushan picked up 3 wickets as Sri Lanka hold off splendid half-centuries from Ben Duckett and Joe Root and the late scare from Jamie Overton to register the win by 19 runs and go 1-0 up in 3-match series and garner important ratings points in the standings.
Kusal Mendis’ marvellous innings helps Sri Lanka post a competitive 271/6
Winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Pathum Nissanka and Kamil Mishara came out to open the batting for Sri Lanka while Jamie Overton had ball in hand for England. The opening duo got off to a steady start but a solid one at that as they played the ball to the merit of the ball and accumulated the runs. Both the openers got starts and scored 49 runs in the first powerplay. The duo also put on 50 runs for the first wicket inside 11 overs before England got their first breakthrough.
It was Sam Curran who provided the breakthrough for England as he dismissed Nissanka for 21 off 30 balls with 2 fours to his name as their main batter got a start but couldn’t kick on. Kusal Mendis came out to the middle next. Soon, the other opener also fell as for the addition of another 4 runs, Kamil Mishara fell for 27 off 37 balls with 2 fours and one six to his name as he was cleaned up by the veteran Adil Rashid. Dhananjaya de Silva came in to join Kusal in the middle.
Kusal and Dhananjaya started to put in another partnership as Kusal scored bulk of the runs while de Silva gave good support to him. The duo added a handy 43-run stand for the third wicket before Dhananjaya de Silva fell for 10 off 21 balls with one four to his name to Rashid yet again. Captain Charith Asalanka came out to bat next and showed some intent out there. Kusal was very composed in the middle.
The Sri Lankan team was 111/3 in 25 overs before they stepped on the accelerator. The duo of Kusal Mendis and Asalanka mustered another 27 runs for the fourth wicket before the captain Asalanka departed for 17 off 16 balls with 2 fours to his name to Rehan Ahmed. Janith Liyanage came out to bat next and looked fluent from the get-go. He joined forces with Mendis and started to form a partnership to lay the base for Sri Lanka as the hosts had slipped to 124/4 in the 27th over.
Liyanage played some lovely shots down the ground and played with a straight bat and looked a lot fluent than Mendis who was struggling a little bit with fitness but hung on for dear life. The duo aced the middle phase of whatever it was left and took the game deep. They added 88 runs for the 5th wicket a crucial stand and took the innings till over 43 before Liyanage fell 4 short of his half-century as he fell for 46 off 53 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Rashid yet again.
Pawan Rathnayake came out to bat next. He kept the scoreboard ticking and gave the strike to the set batter Kusal Mendis. The duo formed a small partnership of 27 runs for the 6th wicket before Rathnayake fell for 12 off 14 balls to Liam Dawson. Dunith Wellalage came out to bat next with the score at 239/6 in 47.2 overs with 2.4 overs left. Wellalage looked in control and took the score to 248/6 in 49 overs.
Jamie Overton came to bowl the final over of the innings and was taken to the cleaners by Wellalage. Wellalage played a useful cameo as he hit 2 sixes and boundaries as well as Overton’s figures were destroyed. Mendis could only take singles but Wellalage played the role of a finisher as 23 runs came of the final over of the innings. The duo added 32 unbeaten runs off 16 balls.
Sri Lanka with Kusal Mendis’ unbeaten 93 off 117 balls finished with a competitive 271/6 in 50 overs. Mendis’ innings consisted of 11 fours in the innings while Wellalage finished with an unbeaten 25 off 12 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name. 20 extras given by the fielding side.
England bowled well with the veteran Adil Rashid being the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/44 in 10 overs. He was ably supported by Liam Dawson who finished with 1/31 in 10 overs. Sam Curran finished with 1/40 in 8 overs. Rehan Ahmed finished with 1/61 in 10 overs. Jamie Overton went for 66 runs in 9 overs. Jacob Bethell finished with 0/19 in 3 overs. This meant that England now needed 272 runs to win the contest off 50 overs to take a 1-0 lead in 3-match series.
All-Round bowling display led by the Sri Lankan spinners gives the home side a win by 19 runs
Chasing 272 for the win, Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett came out to bat for England while Asitha Fernando had ball in hand for Sri Lanka. England got off to a shaky start as the opening duo put on 12 runs for the first wicket before Zak Crawley threw his wicket away for 6 off 11 balls with one four to his name to Asitha Fernando. Joe Root came out to bat next with England in a spot of bother.
Joe Root combined well with Duckett with Root looking fluent out there in the middle. Duckett looked scratchy initially and got better as the innings wore on. England were 41/1 in 10 overs at the end of the powerplay and went onto consolidate their position in the middle. Slowly but steadily the Root-Duckett combination grew in stature and accelerated the innings. The duo played decently in the middle overs and the score at the halfway stage of the chase was 111/1 while Sri Lanka were 111/3 at the same period.
The duo put on a magnificent 117-run stand for the second wicket and put England on top in the run chase as Duckett fell again for 62 off 76 balls with 5 fours and one six to his name to Jeffrey Vandersay as the batter was caught plumb in front. Jacob Bethell came out to bat next. This wicket opened the door for Sri Lanka as they felt they could come back in the game. Root completed a half-century and looked good for more runs. The duo of Root and Bethell added 15 more runs for the third wicket.
Root was caught sweeping against the line and the ball hit the pads with the appeal being turned down. But Sri Lanka reviewed and got the decision overturned in their favour. Root fell for 61 off 90 balls with 5 fours to his name LBW to Dhananjaya de Silva. Captain Harry Brook came out to bat next. Brook and Bethell added 13 more runs to the tally before Brook fell for 6 off 13 balls as he was stumped off captain Charith Asalanka. Jos Buttler came out to bat next.
Two more runs were added to the score before Bethell fell for 15 off 32 balls with one four to his name to Wellalage as the batter was stumped easily. Sam Curran came out to bat with the score at 159/5 in 37.3 overs. Curran did not last long either as he fell for 5 off 9 balls to Wellalage as the wicket fell after 6 runs were added to the score with England capitulating from 129/1 to 165/6. Rehan Ahmed came out to bat next.
Rehan came and played his shots while Buttler struggled for timing. He cleared the ground comfortably and showed his prowess with the bat. While he was there, the Sri Lankans knew this match was far from over. Rehan and Buttler added 38 runs in quick time before Rehan fell for 27 off 21 balls with 5 fours to his name thanks to a great catch at wide long-off by Dunith Wellalage. Jamie Overton came out to bat next to join Jos Buttler in the middle.
Just 8 more runs were added to the score before Buttler fell for 19 off 20 balls with one six to his name as he was cleaned up by Pramod Madushan. Liam Dawson came out to bat and got off the mark with a brace. Just 2 runs were added to the score before Dawson fell in the same over to Madushan for 2 off 2 balls. England were 213/9 in 45.4 overs chasing 272 for the win as the match was as good as over.
But Jamie Overton had other ideas and kept the fight going for England till the end. He was calculating each and every move and striking big while Adil Rashid who was the new batter in hung in there till the end. Overton was on fire and Sri Lanka were bowling wides but he was clearing the ground comfortably. It was the Overton show and remember he had to redeem himself since he had conceded 23 runs in the final over with the ball in hand.
He did so with flying colours and brought a match that was absolutely gone from England to a close end. The equation boiled down to 20 off the last over but the bowler held his nerve and got rid of Overton off a low full toss as he fell for a well made 34 off 17 balls with 4 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Madushan. Rashid remained unbeaten on 0 off 6 balls as England were bowled out for 252 in 49.2 overs. 15 extras given by the fielding side.
Sri Lanka bowled well and held their nerves in the end. Pramod Madushan finished with 3/39 in 5.2 overs. The spinners bowled really well led by Dunith Wellalage who finished with 2/41 in 10 overs. Jeffrey Vandersay finished with 2/39 in 10 overs. Charith Asalanka the captain chipped in with 1/33 in 7 overs. Dhananjaya de Silva finished with 1/22 in 8 overs. Asitha Fernando ended with 1/64 in 8 overs. Kamil Mishara bowled an over for 9 runs.
So, Sri Lanka win by 19 runs to take a 1-0 lead in 3-match series. Dunith Wellalage for his miserly bowling, great finishing and not to mention his bowling was adjudged the Player of the Match.
What Lies Ahead
So, Sri Lanka have drawn first blood in the ODI series with a good 19-run win over England in Colombo. The next ODI takes place on Saturday 24th January, 2026 live from 2:30 PM IST onwards. The venue will be the same one in Colombo. Can England bounce back to level the series? Or will Sri Lanka seal the series on Saturday itself. Stick around to wait and find out.
Also Read: SL vs ENG: Kusal Mendis’ Marvellous Knock Helps Sri Lanka Post A Competitive 271/6