New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra, right, celebrates with teammates the wicket of Sri Lanka’s captain Dasun Shanaka, centre, during the T20 World Cup cricket match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026. (AP Photo)

TimesofIndia.com in Colombo: New Zealand kept their T20 World Cup campaign alive with a commanding 61-run win over Sri Lanka at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Wednesday, a result shaped by composure under pressure with the bat, clinical precision with the ball, and an atmosphere driven relentlessly by Sri Lankan fans who refused to drift away even as the contest slipped beyond their team.Long after the outcome appeared inevitable, the stands remained full, the drums kept beating and the trumpets echoed through the Colombo night. Every boundary was still applauded, every piece of good fielding acknowledged. Wins or losses have never defined Sri Lankan fandom, and even as their World Cup campaign came to an end, the loyalty did not waver. Covering a Sri Lanka match is rarely just about cricket. It feels like a festival, and on this night, the celebration continued despite the pain.

Santner, McConchie turn the innings

Earlier, put in to bat on a surface that offered grip and variable bounce, the visitors began with intent. Finn Allen counterpunched sharply against Dilshan Madushanka, taking on the movement with instinctive aggression. But as quickly as the tempo rose, it dipped. Allen’s dismissal triggered a brief wobble, Tim Seifert followed soon after, and Sri Lanka sensed an opening.Rachin Ravindra brought fluency through the middle overs, rotating strike and finding the occasional boundary, but the introduction of spin shifted the balance decisively. Maheesh Theekshana, operating with subtle changes of pace and trajectory, strangled New Zealand’s scoring options. Ravindra fell attempting a cut hit too flat, Mark Chapman was undone by turn and bounce, and Daryl Mitchell was beaten by skid rather than spin. From a position of comfort at 75 for 2, New Zealand slid to 84 for 6 in the space of nine deliveries.It was here that Mitchell Santner and Cole McConchie stepped in to rescue the innings. The approach was uncomplicated and clear-headed. Survival came first. Boundaries were not chased, singles were valued and dot balls were absorbed without panic. McConchie, playing his first major role of the tournament, broke a 33-ball boundary drought late in the 16th over with a crisp strike through the infield. The release was immediate. Santner followed by reading length early and targeting the shorter leg side boundary with authority. The momentum swing was sudden and decisive. Santner went after Theekshana, who had been Sri Lanka’s most economical bowler until then, muscling slog sweeps and punishing full tosses. McConchie matched him stroke for stroke, using clever bat angles and strong bottom-hand hits to exploit gaps behind square.What had begun as a recovery turned into a late surge. In the final four overs, the seventh-wicket pair plundered 70 runs, transforming New Zealand’s total from fragile to formidable. Santner’s 47 from 26 balls anchored the charge, while McConchie’s unbeaten 31 ensured there was no late collapse. Together, they added 84 in 47 deliveries and lifted New Zealand to a competitive 168 for 7.

Henry sets up the defence

In reply, Sri Lanka’s chase never truly found its feet and was disrupted from the first ball. Matt Henry bowled Pathum Nissanka with a delivery that jagged back to hit middle stump. It was a classic seam bowler’s dismissal and a psychological blow that stunned a full house.Henry followed it up with a wicket maiden and then struck again with the first ball of his second over, removing Charith Asalanka. Two overs, two wickets and just three runs conceded summed up his impact. Sri Lanka limped to 20 for 2 at the end of the powerplay, their lowest such total in the tournament, and the uphill climb became steeper with every over.The squeeze never eased. Lockie Ferguson’s pace added urgency without sacrificing control, while Santner and Ish Sodhi closed down scoring options from either end. The fielding mirrored the bowling intensity, with sharp catching and athletic work inside the ring ensuring Sri Lanka were forced to take risks rather than accumulate.The decisive blow came through Rachin Ravindra, whose left-arm spin turned pressure into collapse. Varying his pace and width cleverly, Ravindra lured batters out of their crease and allowed Tim Seifert to shine behind the stumps. Kusal Mendis and Pavan Rathnayake were both stumped, beaten by flight, drift and turn. Ravindra struck again when Dasun Shanaka top-edged a cut, and completed his four-wicket haul by dismissing Dushan Hemantha. His figures of 4 for 27 reflected not just wickets, but an ability to sense panic and exploit it ruthlessly.Kamindu Mendis offered brief resistance, but wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. Glenn Phillips and Daryl Mitchell ensured chances were taken, Santner chipped in to close out the innings and Sri Lanka were eventually bowled out for 107.For New Zealand, the victory does more than end Sri Lanka’s campaign. It keeps their own semifinal hopes alive in a tightly contested Super Eight phase. Their blueprint is now clear. Strike early with the new ball, suffocate through the middle overs and trust the depth in their batting to recover from adversity.For Sri Lanka, the tournament ends with disappointment, but also with a reminder of what remains unbreakable. Even as the final wickets fell, the crowd stayed. The band played on, the trumpets rang out and the applause continued. The result belonged to New Zealand, but the night, as always in Colombo, belonged to the fans.Brief Scores New Zealand: 168/7 in 20 overs (Mitchell Santner 47, Cole McConchie 31 not out; Maheesh Theekshana 3/30, Dushmantha Chameera 3/38)Sri Lanka: 107/8 in 20 overs (Kamindu Mendis 31; Rachin Ravindra 4/27, Matt Henry 2/14)

England’s Will Jacks, center, celebrates the wicket of Sri Lanka’s Dunith Wellalage during the T20 World Cup cricket match between Sri Lanka and England in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. (AP Photo)

TimesofIndia.com in Kandy: Sri Lankan fans packed the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in full voice as England’s batters obligingly threw their wickets away. The noise, however, didn’t last long. What followed was an even more miserable spectacle from the home side, a collapse so poor that it briefly resembled a contest to produce the ugliest dismissal of the night.After opting to bat first, England were still pinned down by a Sri Lankan bowling performance that, for all its discipline and variety, deserved far more than what was to come later. Despite recent injury concerns, it was close to a textbook T20 effort: left-arm pace from Dilshan Madushanka, loopy left-arm spin from Dunith Wellalage, mystery spin from Maheesh Theekshana, and raw, hostile pace from Dushmantha Chameera, who nailed his yorkers and exploited the around-the-wicket angle. England scraped to 146 for 9, a total that felt at least 20 runs short on a slow, two-paced surface.Then came the implosion. Sri Lanka’s chase unravelled almost instantly, wickets tumbling with numbing predictability. Shot selection was reckless, execution worse. After losing to Zimbabwe in their final group match, this crushing 51-run defeat in their opening game against England may not just damage their campaign; it could well bring an end to their semifinal hopes.

Salt’s masterclass

England’s innings was a study in contrast: the composure and clarity of Phil Salt set against a broader batting effort that unravelled once Sri Lanka’s spinners tightened the screws. On a surface offering just enough grip, with the outfield slowed by damp patches, England never truly escaped the chokehold, despite Salt’s fluent 62 off 40 balls while battling cramps in the humidity.For Sri Lanka, the tone was set early by Madushanka, who found a hint of swing with the new ball. He kept Salt and Jos Buttler quiet, conceding only four runs in his opening over and repeatedly probing the fourth-stump line. Buttler, under constant examination, struggled to settle. When Sri Lanka introduced Wellalage as early as the second over, the intent was clear: attack England with spin from the outset.

Salt momentarily broke the shackles, leaning back to loft Wellalage over extra cover for the first six of the innings, but the pressure rarely relented. Madushanka continued to tease Buttler with full lengths and subtle changes of pace, conceding just three runs in a miserly over. The contest ended abruptly when Wellalage trapped Buttler in front, the England skipper departing for a scratchy 7 off 14.Sri Lanka sensed an opening and doubled down with aggressive fields. Jacob Bethell walked into a leg slip and perished soon after, miscuing a slog to give Madushanka a sharp catch. At the end of the powerplay, England were 37 for 2.Spin dominated the middle phase. Wellalage and Theekshana bowled with control and imagination, varying pace and trajectory to force errors. The duo conceded 47 runs and shared five wickets. Harry Brook fell to drift and dip from Wellalage, while a needless run-out accounted for Tom Banton. At halfway, England were 68 for 4.Salt kept England afloat, reaching a well-judged fifty off 36 balls. A couple of clean strikes off Chameera lifted the tempo and brought up England’s 100, but support remained fleeting. Salt’s resistance ended when he failed to clear long-off against Wellalage, departing for a high-quality 62. Theekshana wrapped up the lower order, while Wellalage completed a three-wicket haul.

Sri Lanka imploded

Sri Lanka’s chase unravelled in a blur as England ripped through the batting with a ruthless new-ball burst and a remarkable spell of part-time spin from Will Jacks.Jofra Archer set the tone, testing Pathum Nissanka with sharp short balls. Nissanka briefly counterpunched before Archer induced a mistimed pull, safely taken by Jamie Overton.England then went bang-bang. Kusal Mendis chipped one straight back to Will Jacks, before Pathan Rathnayake charged first ball and skied one to Tom Banton. Archer removed Kamil Mishara with a thick edge, Overton taking a sharp catch at fly slip.Jacks struck twice more as Wellalage picked out Brook and Kamindu Mendis chipped Dawson straight down the ground. Chaos followed when Dushan Hemantha dragged a pull shot onto his own stumps. Sri Lanka’s last hope, Dasun Shanaka, fell after a fine relay catch by Jacks and Banton. Shanaka top-scored with 30 off 24 balls.Sri Lanka were bowled out for 95 runs in 16.4 overs. For England, Jacks (3/22), Liam Dawson (2/27), Archer (2/20) and Adil Rashid (2/13) were the standout bowlers.Brief scoresEngland 146/9 in 20 overs (Phil Salt 62; Dunith Wellalage 3/26, Maheesh Theekshana 2/21)Sri Lanka 95 all out in 15.2 overs (Dasun Shanaka 30; Will Jacks 3/22, Jofra Archer 2/20)

Suryakumar Yadav and Usman Tariq (Agency Image)

India skipper Suryakumar Yadav admitted that the team’s batting has looked a little shaky in the first two matches of the T20 World Cup but expressed confidence in handling Pakistan’s tricky spinner Usman Tariq, describing him as “an out of syllabus question” in an exam. “See, sometimes there is a question in the exam as well which is out of syllabus. So, we can’t leave that question. To tackle that, you have to adopt your own way. Yes, he is a different character when he comes to bowl,” Surya said at the pre-match press conference.

He added, “But at the same time, we can’t just surrender. We practise with similar types of bowlers and similar actions. We will try to execute what we are practising in the net sessions.” India’s earlier matches exposed some vulnerabilities, with the team reduced to 77 for six against the USA and then losing five wickets for just four runs in the death overs against Namibia. Looking ahead to Sunday’s clash on the slow Premadasa wicket, Surya acknowledged the challenge posed by Tariq’s unusual bowling action, which has sparked debates about legality. “We had a scratchy start. You can’t run away from the fact that it was not a proper T20 wicket. But I said earlier too that you can’t actually brush everything under the carpet. There is no excuse,” he said. He remained positive about the team’s recovery, noting, “But we came back strongly. So, that’s the beauty of T20 cricket. One or two batters I think taking that responsibility makes us cross the line.” Surya also highlighted the mental challenge of facing Pakistan, saying the key is handling pressure and big moments. “Yes, there will be pressure. There will be nerves, butterflies in the stomach when we start the game tomorrow. But yeah, at the same time, if there’s no pressure, no nerves, then there’s no fun to play cricket. And yeah, it’s a big occasion. But yeah, I mean, every time I say the same thing, at the end of the day, it’s just another game. You have to pack your skills, play some good cricket, focus on what you want to do better, and we’ll see what happens.” Despite Pakistan being in Sri Lanka for the past fortnight, Surya remained confident. “They might have some edge. But as I said, we have come here before, we have played in these conditions, we know how the pitch plays, similar conditions to India. It’s like the same situation for both the teams. See, it’s definitely challenging when you come to Sri Lanka. But then at the end of the day, you have to challenge yourself, somehow find a solution and come out good,” he said.