2026 ICC T20 World Cup: Sweet victory for England against Sri Lanka in Kandy
Will Jacks’ massive contribution helps England to big win over Lions
England kicked off what turned out to be a day of big surprises in the Super 8 stage of the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup by defeating tournament co-hosts Sri Lanka by 51 runs at the Pallekele Cricket Stadium in Kandy and confirming our cricket predictions for the match.
Despite entering the match as favourites, many felt that Sri Lanka would be able to trouble the visitors given their home advantage, and it seemed to be going according to plan for the hosts after they took the wickets of Jos Buttler and the in-form Jacob Bethell inside the powerplay.
However, after a slow start to the tournament, Phil Salt showed why he is the number two-ranked batter in the shortest format of the game, scoring a steady 62 runs off just 42 deliveries, including six 4s and two 6s at a strike rate of 155.00.
Aside from Salt, the Poms’ batting order was very poor, but Will Jacks scored an important 21 runs of 14 balls batting at number seven, following up on the 53* he put up against Italy in the team’s final match of the group stage at Eden Gardens last Monday.
England eventually set a target of 146/9 in their 20 overs, which initially seemed at least 30-40 runs short of what would be considered a good total, but that was before their bowling unit turned up in a big way in the second innings during their opponents’ chase.
Jofra Archer got the ball rolling, and his searing pace proved too hot for the Sri Lankan openers to handle, as he claimed the scalps of both Pathum Nissanka and Kamil Mishara. However, the star of the show for the visitors was Jacks, who finished with figures of 3/22 in his four overs.
The English all-rounder dismissed Kusal Mendis, Pavan Rathnayake and Dunith Wellalage for a combined total of 23 runs, while Adil Rashid’s bowling at the death earned him two wickets, as Sri Lanka crumbled all out for just 95 runs in the 17th over, marking their second loss in the competition.
Host nations face uphill tasks to reach World Cup semi-finals
While most expected teams from the sub-continent to dominate this year’s World Cup, the opening round of matches in the Super 8s have shown that the level of this year’s competition has certainly gone up a notch, underlined by India’s big loss to South Africa later in the day.
The Men in Blue suffered their first defeat in the T20 World Cup after 12 consecutive victories, and like the Lions, they now sit at the bottom of their group. Pakistan’s opening match in this stage of the competition against New Zealand was washed out, forcing them to settle for one point.
As it stands, the Proteas and England are the teams to beat, having notched up big wins that have taken them to the top of their groups, with impressive net run rates. The Windies and the Chevrons are the only teams left to play their first Super 8s match, and you can check out our experts’ thoughts on that fixture in our West Indies vs Zimbabwe prediction.
Super 8: Group 1
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Africa | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3.800 |
| 2 | West Indies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 3 | Zimbabwe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 4 | India (H) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −3.800 |
Super 8: Group 2
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2.550 |
| 2 | New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 3 | Pakistan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 4 | Sri Lanka (H) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −2.550 |
