Sri Lanka were up against Australia in the 30th match of the ICC 2026 WT20. This match is played at Pallekele Stadium and this is a Group B Fixture. Australia were batting first and got off to a solid start. But the big talking point was the injury to Matheesha Pathirana during the match. The ace Sri Lankan pacer suffered a hamstring injury during the T20 World Cup match. This happened when Pathirana was bowling his first over and it was the third of the innings where Pathirana pulled up during his follow through holding his left hamstring. He was immediately checked by the team physio but the pacer hobbled off the field. Dasun Shanaka bowled the remaining two balls of the over. This was a big blow to Sri Lanka.
Pathirana could just bowl the four balls giving away three runs and went off the field. It is unknown if he would return in the later part of the innings but it looks highly unlikely that he might return.
This is a must win game for Australia as they suffered a defeat against Zimbabwe in the last game and have one win in two matches. Sri Lanka won the previous two matches against Oman and Ireland and will be looking to continue their good form in home conditions. They can qualify for the Super 8 with a win here.
Australia have got off to the perfect start scoring 110 runs in the first 10 overs and have almost taken the game away from the hosts. The injury to Pathirana is a big blow and Sri Lanka will be hoping to pull things back in the second half of the innings. Hemantha and Wellalage picked up one wicket each while both Australian openers completed their half centuries and Head was dismissed for 54 while Marsh is going strong and set for a big one.
