Thursday’s T20 World Cup 2026 clash in Colombo delivered pure cricket drama as Zimbabwe stunned Sri Lanka by 6 wickets at R. Premadasa Stadium. Sri Lanka’s 178/7 proved insufficient as Zimbabwe romped to victory with balls to spare.
Skipper Dasun Shanaka owned up to the bowling meltdown in his presser. ‘Simple strategy: early breakthroughs. We didn’t deliver. New bowlers take time to settle, but that’s no excuse. We had it in us to bowl tighter. Some of my risks backfired too,’ he stated.
He lauded the batting efforts, especially Pathum Nissanka’s 62 off 41 and Pavan Rathnayake’s 44 off 25 – a knock featuring 3 fours and 2 sixes. On the other side, Brian Bennett’s unbeaten 63 off 48 and Sikandar Raza’s 45 off 26 sealed the deal for Zimbabwe.
Both teams are Super 8 bound, yet this upset raises questions for Sri Lanka. Shanaka’s forthright comments pave the way for strategic tweaks.