England defeated Sri Lanka by 119 runs in the opening of the three-match series against Sri Lanka at the Utilita Bowl. Captain Harry Brook led by example, smacking unbeaten 114 runs off only 49 deliveries, while Jos Buttler managed to keep up with the tempo, scoring 80 off 44. Based on their commanding show, the hosts posted 254 runs on the board in the first innings, which proved to be a hefty task for the Charith Asalanka-led side.
Notably, England posted 90 runs in the powerplay and Sri Lanka simply couldn’t recover from that. The pair of Buttler and Brook added 128 runs off 60 deliveries and the visitors looked clueless in the middle, as none of their plans worked in the middle. Wanindu Hasaranga finally managed to get the breakthrough in the 13th over, but since then, Brook took over and took the game away from Sri Lanka’s reach.
Their bowling decisions further added to their difficulties. Maheesh Theekshana bowled only two overs after conceding heavily, while Wellalage and Dasun Shanaka were taken for 16 and 19 respectively in later overs.
Meanwhile, Aneurin Donald made his England debut in the first T20I. However, the Glamorgan batter failed to impress in his debut game. The 29-year-old replaced Phil Salt in the playing XI, who is out with an injury, and made 12 runs off five balls in the match.
Sri Lanka flop with bat
Sri Lanka’s reply never developed momentum. Sonny Baker opened the bowling with a maiden and finished with three wickets for 12 runs. Playing at his home ground, the pacer claimed Kamil Mishara and Lahiru Udara before removing Maheesh Theekshana with a delivery that struck the off stump.
England used six bowlers and each claimed at least one wicket. Dunith Wellalage finished as Sri Lanka’s leading run-scorer, adding 33 runs off 21 balls. Dasun Shanaka made 24 and he was the second-highest run-scorer of the match. That eventually sums up the difficult night Sri Lanka experienced in Southampton.
The visitors were eventually bundled out for only 135 runs as England registered a mammoth victory of 119 runs. Apart from Sonny, Jamie Overton and Liam Dawson were effective too, picking up two each.
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