Toss and teams first. Dasun Shanaka won the flip and, without much hesitation, put England in. The Sri Lankan captain reckons chasing still suits his side after that eye-catching win here over Australia six days ago. “We’ve been chasing well in the past few occasions and happy to chase again. The boys are very confident playing here,” he said at the presentation.
Harry Brook, marking his 27th birthday, simply nodded. The England skipper has talked a lot about intent over the past fortnight and repeated the theme: be bold, keep swinging. England, therefore, go unchanged for a fourth match running – Jamie Overton again slots in as the seam-bowling all-rounder – while a cut on Jacob Bethell’s spinning finger means he is unlikely to bowl. Everything else is as you were.
Sri Lanka have tweaked. Out goes Pramod Madushan, back comes Dushmantha Chameera for an extra burst of pace. Kamil Mishara replaces Kusal Perera at the top in another search for a solid opening stand. Small shifts, but the hosts hope the balance now looks right.
Quick look back. Earlier this month the two sides played three T20Is on this same strip; England nicked the lot, though none by landslides. The last of those, a low-scorer that England pinched by 12 runs, still lingers. It explains why Shanaka fancies the chase – the surface tends to settle under lights – and perhaps why Brook keeps stressing positivity with the bat.
Quotes and views. Former Sri Lanka all-rounder Farveez Maharoof, on commentary duty, offered the bluntest line of the build-up: “Buttler, Salt’s form ‘a little bit alarming’.” He added a follow-up that rather frames the evening: “Buttler, Salt against Theekshana, Chameera could be where the game is won or lost.” No great mystery there. Sri Lanka’s class off-spinner and their fastest quick will take the new ball; England’s openers have flickered rather than roared.
Conditions. Heavy rain all week has left the outfield patchy, especially square of the wicket. The centre strip stayed under covers, so there should still be pace for the seamers early on, then a bit of skid for the spinners. Fielders, though, will find the boundary ropes greasy. It is one of those evenings where a sliding stop can easily become a slip-and-slide.
For the stat-minded, Phil Salt needs 34 for 1000 career T20I runs, Jos Buttler requires three dismissals to reach 50 as a keeper in World Cups, and Chameera’s next wicket will be his 75th in the format. None of it decides a match but it shapes the narrative.
Finally, the XIs in full.
Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis (wk), Pavan Rathnayake, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka (capt), Dunith Wellalage, Dushan Hemantha, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka, Dushmantha Chameera.
England: Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook (capt), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid.
First ball due at 7pm local. A wet outfield, two fairly familiar line-ups, and – if Maharoof is right – everything riding on the first six overs.
