Sri Lanka opened theirs t20 world cup 2026 Hard-fought campaign with 20-run win ireland In Colombo. After being invited to bat, the co-hosts recovered from a mid-innings collapse thanks to crucial half-centuries to post a competitive score of 163/6. Kusal Mendis And Kamindu Mendis.
Ireland’s target looked promising at 104/2, but the introduction of Sri Lanka’s elite spin pair turned the game. Mahesh Theekshana And Wanindu Hasaranga Destroyed the middle order, started a dramatic collapse by taking three wickets each. Ireland eventually finished on 143/9 as the required run rate was out of reach in the final overs. The win is a perfect start for the Lions in front of their home crowd, having secured two vital points in Group B.
T20 World Cup 2026: Mendis duo save Sri Lanka after middle order wobble against Ireland
The Sri Lankan innings started with high energy but soon faced resistance from a disciplined Irish bowling attack mark adair And George Dockrell. after losing kamil mishara Quick, Pathum Nissanka And Mendis tried to settle down, yet Dockrell’s double strike in the middle overs left the co-hosts at 86/4 by the 14th over. As the run pace started to settle down, Kamindu came in and completely changed the momentum by scoring a blistering 44 runs off just 19 balls, which included four fours and two big sixes.
His aggression allowed Mendis to hold on at the other end, ultimately remaining unbeaten on 56 off 43 balls and taking the team to a defendable total of 163. The final climax was particularly chaotic, because barry mccarthy A record 11 balls were bowled in the 19th over, which included several wides and important wickets of Kamindu and the captain. Dasun Shanaka. Despite the inconsistencies, Sri Lanka’s late overs surge provided their bowlers with the cushion they needed to put pressure on the slow Premadasa surface.
T20 World Cup 2206: Spin twins Mahesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga demolish Ireland
Ireland’s chase of 164 runs begins Ross Adair provided a fiery start, and the partnership between harry tector (40) and lorcan tucker (21) put them in a strong position at 104/2. However, the game turned in the 15th over when Hasaranga removed Tector, leading to Ireland’s collapse as Ireland lost seven wickets for only 39 runs. Theekshana was equally lethal, removing Paul Stirling before returning to clean up the lower middle order with his trademark mystery spin, and finishing with elite figures of 3/23.
Hasaranga got out and the third wicket fell. curtis kaempferwas a personal milestone as it took his 40th career wicket in the T20 World Cup, moving him to second place on the all-time list. shakib al hassan. Dushmantha Chameera And Mathisha Pathirana Speed support was provided to ensure that there were no late surprises for the visitors. By the time the final over arrived, the equation of 27 runs was too much for Dockrell and Adair to handle in the face of Pathirana’s accurate yorkers.
Here’s how fans reacted:
Sri Lanka defeated Ireland by 20 runs. Ireland has itself to blame for this defeat; Their fielding during the last four overs was very poor and they gave away too many freebies, which cost them the game.#T20WorldCup #SLvIRE
– Tariq Khan (@_TariqKhan) 8 February 2026
Brilliant performance from Sri Lanka’s spinners, including the injured Hasaranga.
Velez was also very good, and Theekshana was my favorite of them all.
– Behram Qazi 🇵🇰 🇨🇦 (@DeafMango) 8 February 2026
This World Cup continues to be a good run 🙂 Hasaranga got a wicket using one leg! #T20WorldCup
– Eames (@NaeemahBenjamin) 8 February 2026
Thank God that at the last minute, Sri Lanka scrapped Dhananjay de Silva’s plans and included Kamindu Mendis in the World Cup squad.
– Rex Clementine (@RexClementine) 8 February 2026
First game, first win! 🦁🔥
Our #T20WorldCup The tour started with a bang, we beat Ireland by 20 runs. Great transformation of the boys to defend the clan! motiv #srilankacricket #SLvIRE pic.twitter.com/opMit2uThM
– Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) 8 February 2026
Wanindu Hasaranga took 3 wickets on one leg. What a champion cricketer he is..
Well done champion 👏👏#SLvIRE #T20WorldCup2026
– Nibraz Ramzan (@nibraz88cricket) 8 February 2026
Theekshana delivers. special player for @OfficialSLC
– Dominic Machado (@DominicMachado1) 8 February 2026
– 3 wickets for Theekshana.
– 3 wickets for Hasaranga.🚨Sri Lanka defeated Ireland in T20 World Cup 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Iv2AG9mwXJ
– Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) 8 February 2026
Another small team that was good at many stages but just couldn’t get it together!!
I am troubled looking for troubled!!
Ireland felt inferior in front of Sri Lanka!!
All 6 matches over 2 days were good T20 cricket with 160-180 ERAs instead of rubbish flat tracks!!#T20WorldCup2026 #SLvIRE– Baddhakist_thelazygenius (@BaddhakistT) 8 February 2026
Sri Lanka won over Ireland by 20 runs after a disciplined performance in the field.#Cricket #SLvIRE #srilankacricket #T20WorldCup2026 pic.twitter.com/eYGvPZazzU
– CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) 8 February 2026
See also: T20 World Cup 2026: Pawan Rathnayake gives away wicket with careless shot during SL vs IRE clash
