Sri Lanka beat England by 19 runs in ODI opener

Sri Lanka spinners led by Vandersay and Wellalage defended 271 to beat England by 19 runs in the first ODI at Colombo. Kusal Mendis’ unbeaten 93 and Janith Liyanage’s 46 helped set a competitive total

Colombo: Sri Lanka spinners thrived in home conditions to beat England by 19 runs in the opening game of the three-match ODI series on Thursday.

With star spinner Wanindu Hasaranga rested, legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay (2-39) and left-arm spinner Dunith Wellalage (2-41) picked up key wickets on a slow pitch to bowl out England for 252.

---

Earlier, No. 3 batter Kusal Mendis anchored Sri Lanka to 271-6 with an unbeaten 93 off 117 balls, including 11 boundaries.

England overcame the early loss of Zak Crawley, who made a disappointing return to 50-over cricket after more than two years when he nicked Asitha Fernando behind the stumps for just 6.

Ben Duckett (62) and Joe Root (61) shared a 117-run stand, but Sri Lanka didn’t allow the pair to score freely as spinners found plenty of grip on the slow wicket.

Vandersay broke the century stand when Duckett was trapped lbw trying a reverse sweep. With the wicket assisting slow bowlers, Sri Lanka rotated spinners from both ends.

Back-up spinners Dhananjaya de Silva and captain Charith Asalanka shared 15 overs and picked up crucial wickets. Root was trapped lbw by de Silva, and captain Harry Brook (6) was stumped down the legside by Asalanka through some sharp glove work from Mendis.

Wellalage then struck twice in successive overs, dismissing Jacob Bethell stumped and taking a sharp return catch to remove Sam Curran as England slipped to 165-6 in the 40th over.

Jos Buttler (19) struggled to build momentum before he was undone by fast bowler Pramod Madushan (3-39) with a slower ball. Rehan Ahmed (27) and Jamie Overton (34 off 17 balls) showed aggression against pace, giving England a glimmer of hope, before Vandersay had Ahmed caught at long off and Overton was dismissed in the final over as England fell short.

Earlier, Kamil Mishara (27) and Pathum Nissanka (21) provided a 50-run opening stand before both Sri Lankan openers perished in quick succession after Asalanka won the toss and elected to bat.

Mendis scored his first run off the 13th ball he faced but gained confidence against spinners, striking successive boundaries off Ahmed. De Silva, playing his first ODI since November 2023, struggled against spin before he was lbw to Adil Rashid for 10, while Asalanka top-edged Ahmed after scoring 17.

Mendis and Janith Liyanage (46) then revived the innings with an 88-run stand. Liyanage hit two sixes and five fours before offering a tame return catch to Rashid, who finished with 3-44.

Wellalage provided a late flurry with an unbeaten 25 off 12 balls, mostly farming the strike in the final two overs and smashing Overton for three fours and a six in the final over, which went for 23.