T20 World Cup: Sri Lanka win toss, put England in to bat
Cricket
Sri Lanka won the toss against England and decided to bowl in a Super Eight stage encounter at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Balagolla
(Web Desk) – Sri Lanka won the toss against England and decided to bowl in a Super Eight stage encounter of the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Balagolla, on Sunday
Sri Lanka came into the second stage of the World Cup on the back of three successive wins and a defeat from four group-stage games. They were beaten by Zimbabwe in the final game. On the other hand, England won three and lost one match in their group-stage journey. They were defeated by the resurging West Indies.
England hoped experienced batsman Jos Buttler would be among the runs. He has not fired in the event so far. Their trump cards would be Will Jacks and Jacob Bethell. Spinner Adil Rashid would be key player who could bog down the Lankans.
On the other hand, Sri Lanka would be without fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana who was ruled out of the tournament ahead of Sri Lanka’s defeat to Zimbabwe. Dilshan Madushanka, who replaced him, will be hoping to retain his spot in the side after conceding just 20 runs from his three overs against Zimbabwe. Dushmantha Chameera is set to return to the side after being rested for the final group game.
In terms of the head-to-head record, England and Sri Lanka have played 17 times and the former have a 13-4 edge against the latter. At the T20 World Cup, England floored Sri Lanka, winning five of the six matches.
Squads
Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis (wk), Pavan Rathnayake, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka (c), Dunith Wellalage, Dushan Hemantha, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka
England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook (c), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
INDIA VS SOUTH AFRICA
Defending champions India and South Africa will be meeting in the other match of the day at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad at 6:30 pm PST.
India and South Africa remained unbeaten in their groups. India defeated the USA, Namibia, Pakistan and the Netherlands without any resistance.
South Africa faced a challenge on way to Super Eight stage. They opened the tournament with an easy win against Canada, but had to sweat against Afghanistan. They managed to defeat them after playing two super overs. Proteas then thumped New Zealand and the UAE in the raminig two games.
The two sides will be meeting for the 36th time in T20 internationals. India have won 21 of the matches, while South Africa have claimed victory on 13 occasions with one no result.
Teams (probable)
India: Ishan Kishan (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram (c), Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Ryan Rickelton, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Keshav Maharaj
