Sam Curran produced a T20I career-best 58 off 48 balls to steer the England cricket team out of trouble and seal a 3-0 sweep over Sri Lanka in the final game of the three-match SL vs ENG T20 2026 series in Kandy on Tuesday.
Curran’s innings, laced with six fours and a solitary six at a strike rate of 120.83, was the top score in the match and lifted England to a scrappy 128/9 before the visitors closed out a 12-run win.
In what was their final international match before the T20 World Cup 2026, England were jolted early as Ben Duckett fell off his first ball, and the collapse deepened to 34/4 inside the powerplay.
Curran walked in with the innings in disarray and soon saw more wickets tumble, leaving England reeling at 65/6 in the 11th over.
Forced to shelve any attacking instinct, he patiently rebuilt a partnership with Liam Dawson. Their gritty 47-run stand off 41 balls steadied the innings and pushed England past 100 in the 17th over, giving the total some respectability.
Once Dawson departed in the 18th over, Curran shifted gears. He drove the final push with a boundary to end the 19th over and found another four off Dushmantha Chameera before the Sri Lankan quick completed his five-wicket haul by dismissing him for a fighting fifty - his second in T20Is and now his highest score.
His game-defining innings in the third T20I against Sri Lanka earned him the Player of the Match award. Curran was also named the Player of the Series for his all-round exploits.
The Englishman had already shaped the series earlier with a stunning hat-trick in the opening match, becoming only the second England men’s player to claim one in T20Is after Chris Jordan’s feat at the 2024 World Cup.
In the second game, he held his nerve with an unbeaten 20 off 14 to seal a tight chase with two balls to spare.
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Sam Curran - part of Rajasthan Royals’ IPL 2026 squad - continues to be a central figure in England’s white-ball plans.
Since his debut in 2018, he has played 67 T20Is, taking 60 wickets at around 27 and scoring 529 runs at an average of roughly 20 and a strike rate north of 130.
Curran remains best remembered for his heroics at the T20 World Cup 2022, where he earned both Player of the Match in the final and Player of the Tournament honours.
Curran, alongside Jofra Archer, will spearhead England’s charge at the T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8. England open their campaign against Nepal on February 8.
