Colombo, February 25 – Sri Lanka’s hopes of reaching the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup semi-finals ended with a crushing 61-run defeat to New Zealand at the R Premadasa Stadium. Captain Dasun Shanaka admitted that their performance was “very embarrassing” in front of their home fans.
After New Zealand scored 168/7 in 20 overs, Sri Lanka lost ground by conceding 70 runs in the last four overs. The tournament co-hosts never looked like chasing down the total. With the visitors' spinners, led by Rachin Ravindra’s 4-27, bowling an astonishing 17 overs, Sri Lanka ended up scoring 107/8 in 20 overs and were eliminated from the competition.
The result also extends Sri Lanka's barren run in the competition since winning the title in 2014. "It is very embarrassing to disappoint the home crowd. You know, they've been very supportive. It's like we started really well, but to be honest, the Santner-McConchie partnership was very strong, which took the game away from us.
“See, we wanted to restrict them to around 130, but, you know, our best bowlers bowled really well at the right time, so we must give credit to Mitchell Santner and Cole,” Shanaka said during the post-match presentation ceremony.
The captain also pointed to the lack of intent from his batsmen. "Of course, the batsmen need to take more responsibility at the start, and you know we can't rely on just one or two players. All the batsmen need to take positive options.
“Yes, if you bat positively, you can at least relax when you come to the dugout. But here, we don't take risks, and it's T20 cricket, you need to show more intent.”
Asked about his assessment of the pitch, Shanaka said, “I thought the wicket might be a bit challenging since it was a new pitch. But the way they bowled, and the areas we didn't bowl to, the Sri Lankan bowlers, yes, we bowled occasionally, but not consistently.
“But we must give credit to the New Zealand bowlers, as they bowled really well tonight. Also, the decision to bat was a collective one, but, you know, we didn't expect the pitch to turn so much since it was a new pitch.”
With one match left, Sri Lanka can only play for pride and aim to finish on a high note. “Absolutely, one more game, we need to finish it well, yeah, hopefully, we'll do our best in that game,” said Shanaka.
