Tom Banton’s unbeaten half-century guided England to a 2-0 series win with a game to spare, defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets by DLS method in the second T20I on Sunday (1st February) in Pallekele.
Harry Brook won his fourth consecutive toss of the tour and opted to bowl first, with England remaining unchanged. Sri Lanka made two changes, leaving out Dhananjaya de Silva and Maheesh Theekshana, both of whom had struggled to find rhythm in previous outings. Pavan Rathnayake and Dunith Wellalage returned to the side.
Sri Lankan openers got off to a flier, blasting 34 runs in the first two overs. Pathum Nissanka struck three fours in a row off Sam Curran in the opening over before he and Kamil Mishara each launched a six as Jofra Archer conceded 21 runs. An early introduction of spin brought some control for the visitors. Archer then drew first blood, with Nissanka dragging one onto the stumps, as the hosts finished the powerplay on 58 for 1.
The hosts reached the three-figure mark at the halfway stage, with Mishara sharing another half-century stand with Kusal Mendis. Will Jacks removed the left-hander in the 11th over. The very next over, bowled by Jamie Overton, went for 21 runs, with Pavan Rathnayake hitting a first-ball six and then a four, while Mendis also nailed a pull shot for a maximum early in the over.
England’s spinners managed to pull things back with two wickets in two overs. Mendis fell to Liam Dawson, while skipper Dasun Shanaka, coming in at No.5, failed to make an impact and was undone by a googly from Adil Rashid. Rathnayake was then joined by Charith Asalanka, and the pair revived the innings. They added 56 runs for the fifth wicket as the home side finished on 189 for 5, with Rathnayake top-scoring with an impressive 22-ball 40.
The three spinners shared a wicket apiece for the visitors, while Archer conceded 42 runs in his four overs but picked up two scalps.
Matheesha Pathirana was given the new-ball duty once again and removed the dangerous Phil Salt in the very first over. Jacob Bethell also couldn’t get going and edged one to the keeper off Dasun Shanaka’s bowling, leaving England at 38 for 2 in 4.3 overs. Wanindu Hasaranga bowled a tidy first over before rain stopped play after 7.2 overs. At 57 for 2, the pressure was on England, with the DLS par score being 69.
After a delay of more than an hour, play resumed at 10.40 pm, with England set a revised target of 168 from 17 overs.
Eshan Malinga returned to complete his over but was forced to leave the field immediately after experiencing discomfort in his left shoulder while delivering a waist-high no-ball, which resulted in a free hit. Janith Liyanage was handed the ball to complete the over and conceded 10 runs.
Dunith Wellalage dismissed Jos Buttler for 39, with Rathnayake taking a fine diving catch. However, the momentum completely swung England’s way after the rain break, with the wet ball proving difficult to control. Harry Brook went berserk from the outset, taking the game away from the hosts. He smashed 36 off just 12 balls, including four sixes, before falling to Pathirana.
Tom Banton continued his good run of form, bringing up his fifty off 29 balls. An unbeaten 43-run stand between him and Sam Curran saw England home with two balls to spare, securing an unassailable lead in the series. Sri Lanka’s two main bowlers were taken apart, with Pathirana finishing with figures of 2 for 47 from his four overs, while Hasaranga went wicketless for the second successive match, conceding 44 runs in his four.
Playing XI
Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis (WK), Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka (C), Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana, Eshan Malinga
England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (w), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook (C), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | b Joe Root | 34 | 22 | 3 | 2 | 154.55 |
| Kamil Mishara | c Jamie Overton b Will Jacks | 36 | 30 | 2 | 2 | 120.00 |
| Kusal Mendis | c Adil Rashid b Liam Dawson, | 32 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 188.24 |
| Pavan Rathnayake | c Jacob Bethell b Mark Wood | 40 | 22 | 5 | 1 | 181.82 |
| Dasun Shanaka | lbw b Adil Rashid | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16.67 |
| Charith Asalanka | not out | 28 | 22 | 4 | 0 | 127.27 |
| Janith Liyanage | not out | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Extras | 17 (b 1 , lb 4 , nb 0, w 12, pen 0) |
| Total | 189/5 (20 Overs, RR: 9.45) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Curran | 2 | 0 | 31 | 0 | 15.50 | |
| Harry Singh | 4 | 0 | 42 | 1 | 10.50 | |
| Will Jacks | 4 | 0 | 24 | 1 | 6.00 | |
| Liam Dawson, | 4 | 0 | 32 | 1 | 8.00 | |
| Adil Rashid | 4 | 0 | 25 | 1 | 6.25 | |
| Jamie Overton | 2 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 15.00 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phil Salt | c Kamil Mishara b Matheesha Pathirana | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Jos Buttler | c Pavan Rathnayake b Dunith Wellalage | 39 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 134.48 |
| Jacob Bethell | c Kusal Mendis b Dasun Shanaka | 13 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 118.18 |
| Tom Banton | not out | 54 | 33 | 0 | 0 | 163.64 |
| Harry Brook | c Wanindu Hasaranga b Matheesha Pathirana | 36 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 300.00 |
| Sam Curran | not out | 20 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 142.86 |
| Extras | 10 (b 4 , lb 0 , nb 1, w 5, pen 0) |
| Total | 173/4 (16.4 Overs, RR: 10.38) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matheesha Pathirana | 4 | 0 | 47 | 1 | 11.75 | |
| Dasun Shanaka | 3 | 0 | 24 | 1 | 8.00 | |
| Dunith Wellalage | 3 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 10.00 | |
| Eshan Malinga | 1.2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 5.00 | |
| Wanindu Hasaranga | 4 | 0 | 44 | 0 | 11.00 | |
| Janith Liyanage | 1.2 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 15.00 | |
 in Pallekele.){kind=link}