Sri Lanka vs England, 3rd T20I: Spin Wins the Series

It was close, a pretty low-scoring game at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. England’s spin bowlers were on point, beating Sri Lanka by 12 runs and winning the series 3-0. They didn’t have many runs to play with – only 128. But England’s slow bowlers, like Jacob Bethell (who did great!) and Will Jacks (who didn’t give away easy runs), kept the pressure on. Sri Lanka just couldn’t keep up on that spinning pitch. It shows how strong and flexible England is, especially with the T20 World Cup coming up soon.

England’s Batting: Not So Hot At First

England batted first, but they had some trouble with Sri Lanka’s bowlers, especially Dushmantha Chameera, who was fast. Losing Phil Salt before the game messed up their plans, and Ben Duckett got out super quick. It wasn’t a good start. Guys kept getting out, one right after the other. Matheesha Pathirana mixed up his speeds, and Dunith Wellalage made it hard to score with his spin. Jos Buttler (25) and Harry Brook (4) tried to hit the ball hard, but they didn’t last long. England was in trouble at 60 for 6 in the 11th over. The pitch helped the spinners, so hitting the ball wasn’t easy.

Sam Curran Saves the Day (Kind Of)

Sam Curran played a great!. He held the innings together with a smart 58 off 48 balls. Liam Dawson helped a bit (14), and they scored 47 runs together, which got England out of a really bad spot. But Chameera came back strong at the end, bowling slower balls and wide yorkers. He got Dawson, Jamie Overton, and then Curran in the last over. He ended up with 5 for 24, his best score ever! England ended up with their lowest T20 score ever against Sri Lanka.

Spin to Win: England’s Smart Bowling

England didn’t have many runs, so they had to get wickets early. Luke Wood did, getting Kamil Mishara out for zero. But then Pathum Nissanka hit three sixes, scoring 23 off 12 balls. It looked like he might win the game quickly. But Liam Dawson caught him out, which was a big deal. Then Adil Rashid and Will Jacks started bowling, and Sri Lanka couldn’t score as fast. Rashid got Pavan Rathnayake out with a great googly, and Jacks got Kusal Mendis (26) and Kamindu Mendis out, too. Sri Lanka needed more runs now, and they were feeling the pressure.

Bethell’s Big Moment

Sri Lanka needed 32 runs from the last 30 balls with six wickets left. It could have gone either way. But then Jacks got Janith Liyanage out for 17. And then Jacob Bethell came to bowl. He’s usually a batter, but he bowled amazingly. He had great control, and Sri Lanka just couldn’t handle it. Jos Buttler stumped Dunith Wellalage (9) off his bowling, then he got Dushmantha Chameera out for a duck, and then he stumped Dasun Shanaka (4), too! He came back to bowl the last over and got the final wicket, finishing with 4 for 11 from 3.3 overs. England won, defending their lowest score ever in T20!

No Big Drama, Just Good Cricket

The game was pretty fair, with no big arguments. They used the Decision Review System (DRS) a little bit, and it worked fine. If anything, England’s batting collapse was the most questionable thing, because the pitch wasn’t that bad.

But there were some great things, too. Dushmantha Chameera got 5 wickets, which was awesome. And Sam Curran played great for England, winning Player of the Match and Player of the Series. Getting a 3-0 win in Asia is great for England’s confidence, because they won in different ways each time (chasing a lot of runs, scoring a lot of runs, and defending a small score). And Jacob Bethell showed that he can bowl well, which is good news of the World Cup.

What I Think

England wasn’t perfect in this game, but it showed they can win even when things are tough. When your best batters don’t do well, but you still win, that means you have a strong team. Curran did great with the bat, and all the bowlers did their job, including Bethell, who doesn’t usually bowl much. Sri Lanka’s batting is weak, especially against spin. Chameera was great, but Sri Lanka didn’t have anyone who could hold the innings together like Curran did for England. This game showed that England can win the World Cup not just by hitting the ball hard, but by being flexible and having a strong team.

What’s Next?

For England, Will Jacks has proven he’s a good bowler, and Sam Curran can still finish games strong. The only question is what to do if Phil Salt is hurt, because Ben Duckett isn’t batting well right now. For Sri Lanka, Dushmantha Chameera is their best bowler, but Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis need to score more runs. They still need to find someone who can hit the ball hard at the beginning and someone who can bowl well at the end.