Colombo, Feb 8 (IANS) Ireland won the toss and elected to bowl first against co-hosts Sri Lanka in a Group B match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday.

Ireland, who were winless at the 2024 edition, arrive with momentum from series victories over Italy and the UAE in Dubai. “It’s slightly different from the last time we were here. It looks a little bit drier, but it looks like a good wicket. It’s pretty hard and firm, so we’ll see what we can do with the new ball here and see if we can chase down whatever they set.

“I think we need to be at our best, and that’s pretty much it. We’ve had a good build-up, preparation has been excellent, so we’re ready to get off and get things started here at the Premadasa. We’ve got good all-round options in the middle, and we’ve picked the extra batter tonight, so hopefully that’ll come in handy towards the back end of the game,” said captain Paul Stirling.

Sri Lanka, the 2014 edition winners, have not made the knockouts of the competition for a long time. They enter the mega event on the back of a 3-0 T20I home defeat to England. “Seems like a very good track, so anything over 170 will be very good on this pitch. I think we’ve got a lot of areas covered coming into the World Cup.

“Yes, we tested some players previously, in the England series and the previous tours. But we are settled here with five bowlers and five quality batsmen, so we are happy to proceed. Very much excited and very happy. You know, home World Cup, so everyone is excited,” said captain Dasun Shanaka.

The square boundaries are at 71 metres and 77 metres respectively, while the straight one is at 84 metres. Sri Lanka and Ireland met three times in T20Is, with the former winning on all three occasions.

Playing XIs:

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis (wk), Pavan Rathnayake, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka (capt), Dunith Wellalage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana

Ireland: Paul Stirling (capt), Ross Adair, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Curtis Campher, Ben Calitz, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Mark Adair, Barry McCarthy. Matthew Humphreys

–IANS

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