England vs SL: Jos Buttler fires hosts to big win in opening T20

Dawid Malan was bowled by Isuru Udana for seven but Jos Buttler, in the company of Jonny Bairstow - who slog-swept a massive six into the stands off Akila Dananjaya to level the scores - guided the hosts home in style.

England opener Jos Buttler smashes a boundary en route his fifty in the first T20 against Sri Lanka. (Photo: Reuters)

A half-century by England’s Jos Buttler and a quick-fire 36 by fellow opener Jason Roy helped the world’s top-ranked T20 team crushed Sri Lanka by eight wickets in their series opener in Cardiff on Wednesday (June 24). Chasing a modest 130 for victory, England cruised home with 17 balls to spare with Buttler unbeaten on 68 off 55 balls and Jonny Bairstow unbeaten on 13.

Dawid Malan was bowled by Isuru Udana for seven but Buttler, in the company of Bairstow - who slog-swept a massive six into the stands off Akila Dananjaya to level the scores - guided the hosts home in style.

50 for @josbuttler!

Scorecard/clips: https://t.co/fNJnBg7MLk#ENGvSL @IGCom pic.twitter.com/UvDcsjf83z — England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 23, 2021

Earlier, a weakened Sri Lanka missing some regular players due to injuries, rode on a battling 50 off 44 balls by Dasun Shanaka lower down the order to post 129/7 after skipper Kusal Perera won the toss and opted to bat. Perera (30) and Gunathilaka (19) made the only other noteworthy contributions as Sam Curran (2/25) and Adil Rashid (2/17) did most of the damage for the hosts in a disciplined bowling performance on a two-paced pitch.

The second T20 will take place at the same venue on Thursday before the final match in Southampton on Saturday. The teams then face each other in three one-day internationals starting on June 29.

(with Reuters inputs)