COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s eleventh-hour call to draft in Kamindu Mendis proved a masterstroke as he produced a match turning cameo to set up a 20-run win over Ireland in their T20 World Cup opener here at the R. Premadasa Stadium on Sunday.

Kamindu’s blistering 44 off 19 balls with four fours and two sixes gave Sri Lanka the late thrust they badly needed to post 163.

The spin trio of Maheesh Theekshana, Wanindu Hasaranga and Dunith Wellalage then ran through the Irish middle order, sharing seven wickets to seal a comfortable win.

Hasaranga claimed three wickets to take his World Cup tally to 40, second only to Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan (50).

There were anxious moments when the leg-spinner limped off after his second over.

Sri Lanka’s innings had been stuck in first gear until Kamindu strode in with the scoreboard reading 86-4 in the 14th over.

The left-hander broke a 57-ball boundary drought with a cheeky reverse sweep and then went into overdrive, plundering 21 runs in the 17th over.

Scoreboard

SRI LANKA:
P. Nissanka c Stirling b Dockrell24
K. Mishara c McCarthy b M. Adair14
K. Mendis not out56
P. Rathnayake b Dockrell5
D. Wellalage c Dockrell b Delany10
K.D. Mendis c Dockrell b McCarthy44
D. Shanaka c M. Adair b McCarthy0
W. Hasaranga not out1

EXTRAS (NB-1, W-8)9
TOTAL (for 6 wkts, 20 overs)163
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-28 (Mishara), 2-62 (Nissanka), 3-68 (Rathnayake), 4-86 (Wellalage), 5-153 (K.D. Mendis), 6-153 (Shanaka)
DID NOT BAT: M. Theekshana, D. Chameera, M. Pathirana
BOWLING: Humphreys 4-0-44-0, Adair 4-0-33-1 (2w), McCarthy 3-0-40-2 (5w, 1nb), Dockrell 4-0-17-2 (1w), Delany 4-0-24-1, Tector 1-0-5-0

IRELAND:
P. Stirling b Theekshana6
R. Adair b Hasaranga34
H. Tector c R’nayake b Hasaranga40
L. Tucker c Mishara b Wellalage21
C. Campher c Shanaka b Hasaranga13
B. Calitz st K. Mendis b Theekshana4
G. Delany c Chameera b T’shana0
G. Dockrell c K.D. Mendis b Pathirana9
M. Adair c Shanaka b Chameera10
M. Humphreys b Pathirana0

EXTRAS (B-1, LB-3, W-2)6
TOTAL (all out, 19.5 overs)143
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-24 (Stirling), 2-56 (R. Adair), 3-105 (Tucker), 4-113 (Tector), 5-120 (Calitz), 6-120 (Delany), 7-126 (Campher), 8-137 (M. Adair), 9-143 (Dockrell)

DID NOT BAT: B. McCarthy
BOWLING: Chameera 3-0-25-1, Theekshana 4-0-23-3, Pathirana 2.5-0-26-2 (1w), Wellalage 4-0-28-1 (1w), Hasaranga 4-0-25-3, Shanaka 2-0-12-0
RESULT: Sri Lanka won by 20 runs.

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2026