Left-arm spinner Dunith Wellalage (3/26) did the star turn as a disciplined Sri Lankan attack restricted a scratchy England to 146 for nine in a Super Eights fixture of the T20 World Cup here on Sunday.Phil Salt top-scored for England with a 62 off 40 balls, even as his teammates failed miserably.Having struggled in the group-stage games, England’s start in the second phase of the showpiece was in stark contrast to skipper Harry Brook’s earlier assertion of playing aggressive cricket.Not only did Sri Lanka stifle the English top-order in the powerplay, but they also managed to snaffle a couple of wickets to leave the visitors at a poor 37 for two at the end of the first six overs, on a pitch that offered something for the bowlers but not as much as the batters made it look.Considering Jos Buttler’s woeful run of form in the tournament and his recent struggles against spinners, it was not surprising to see Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka using Wellalage in the powerplay.Wellalage did a wonderful job, snaring the wickets of Buttler and Brook (14 off 7 balls) in his first three overs to leave England precariously placed at 68 for four in 10 overs, dismissing the captain as their innings approached the halfway mark.Wellalage bowled one slow through the air and got it to drift and miss Brook’s bat and hit his pads.Buttler (7 off 14 balls) was the day’s first casualty as he was rapped on the pads after a failed attempt at reverse sweeping the spinner, bringing to an end a scratch knock that might just force the England team management to starting thinking seriously about giving someone like Ben Duckett a chance in the next game, especially keeping in mind the Nottinghamshire man’s excellent record against the spinners.Maheesh Theekshana (2/21 in 4 overs) dismissed Jacob Bethell after the batter got a leading edge to the third man fielder Dilshan Madushanka (2/25 in 4 overs), who also thrifty with the new ball, conceding just 16 runs in three overs.Tom Banton (6) was on his way back to the dressing room after setting off for a suicidal single, while Sam Curran was out caught in the deep of the bowling of Dushmantha Chameera.Meanwhile Salt, who survived the powerplay for the first time in the tournament, played some fine shots, including a six over extra cover off Wellalage and a maximum over fine leg against Chameera, and raced to his half-century in 36 balls.However, Wellalage fought back to get rid of Salt when the tiring opener failed to send a short ball over long-off, and the England innings deteriorated further after that.
