England v Sri Lanka T20I player grades: Who is top of the class and who faces detention?

SHIVAM PATHAK runs the rule over the performances of every player to take part in the series, which England won 3-0

ENGLAND

Jason Roy (2 matches, 53 runs, ave 26.50)

Roy was rotated in the final game against the series as England look to establish their strongest team for the upcoming World Cup. A useful 36 in the opening fixture ensured that England were set up nicely to avoid faltering in the pursuit of a relatively low total. B

Jos Buttler (1 match, 68 runs)

The wicketkeeper and opener’s white-ball series was curtailed after he suffered a calf injury at the end of the first T20. However, this came just after an impressive 68, in which he displayed a variety of shot choices to steam to his half-century from 38 balls. England will be hoping that his injury isn’t too serious. A

Jonny Bairstow (3 matches, 64 runs, ave 32.00)

Bairstow came in to bat in the first game when just 18 more runs were needed to secure victory, but helped complete the job. He was clean bowled for a duck in the second fixture by Binura Fernando but made up for it with a half-century in the final game at the Rose Bowl, though not at the speed he is capable of. B

Dawid Malan (3 matches, 87 runs, ave 29.00)

Malan has shown quality and consistency in white-ball cricket recently, but had to wait until the final game to deliver a standout performance. Both of his dismissals in the first two games were excellent pieces of bowling: but made up for his single-digit returns on the south coast with a dominant 76 off just 48 balls to steer his nation to a whitewash victory. B

^{Dawid Malan in action}

Liam Livingstone (3 matches, 43 runs, ave 43.00, 2 wickets, ave 13.50)

Not needed in the first game, the batting all-rounder demonstrated his flexibility later on with a 29 not out at Sophia Garden, earning himself man of the match, followed by taking the wicket of Binura Fernando in Southampton. He’s pitched a strong case to the selectors that he could be anywhere in the batting order. B

Eoin Morgan (3 matches, 12 runs, ave 6.00)

This was a disappointing series for the skipper. Though his captaincy can’t be faulted in terms of the result, his two innings saw returns of 11 and 1. He’ll be looking to return to his high-scoring best soon for England as they take on the visitors in the ODIs. C

Sam Billings (2 matches, 26 runs, ave 13.00)

Billings, the wicketkeeper-batsman, was brought into the team to replace the injured Jos Buttler. He was only really called into action during the second match at Cardiff where his 24 helped get his side over the line, and his 2 in Southampton could be forgiven, given Malan and Bairstow had already done the bulk of the damage. He’ll be looking to make the most of the ODI series, as the natural replacement to start over Buttler. C

Moeen Ali (1 match, 7 runs, ave 7.00, 1 wicket, ave 3.00)

It’s been a frustrating battle for Moeen Ali to break into the white-ball side again, and the allrounder had to wait until the final match to make an appearance. His lack of an impact wasn’t really his fault, either, as he found deep-midwicket with just seven balls left of the innings, and teammates David Willey and Chris Jordan doing the damage against a weak Sri Lankan top order with the ball. C

Sam Curran (3 matches, 25 runs, ave -, 5 wickets, ave 9.40)

First rotation with the ball in hand, and in charge of adding crucial runs in the middle-order. Pressure? Not really. Curran was once again excellent for England, taking the key wickets of Avishka Fernando and Dasun Shanaka in the first game, before running out the latter in the second. He finished on five wickets, the second highest in the series, along with adding 25 runs in two not-out visits to the crease - fully meriting his player of the series award. A

David Willey (2 matches, 3 wickets, ave 14.66)

The left-arm seamer was called into the team after the first match and justified his selection with the ball. Willey did all of his damage in the final game of the series, removing Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis and Isaru Udana as the visitors fell a long way short of their target. B

^{England captain Eoin Morgan}

Chris Woakes (2 matches, 1 wicket, ave 23.00)

Though Woakes only managed one wicket in his two appearances, he demonstrated once again that he knows a thing or two about restricting the run-rate. 11 of his 18 balls in the first match at Cardiff were dots, and managed a handy economy of just 2.25 in Southampton, bowling his four overs at cost of just nine runs. A-

Mark Wood (2 matches, 3 wickets, ave 17.00)

A regular in the England T20 set-up, Wood only played the two fixtures at Cardiff before being rotated. His second appearance at Sophia Gardens was the most impressive, dismissing Kusal Mendis followed shortly by Niroshan Dickwella. He registered a handy economy of 4.50 in that game, with 12 important dot balls. B

Chris Jordan (3 matches, 8 runs, ave -, 3 wickets, ave 24.33)

Jordan took a wicket in each of the three matches, finishing on an economy of 6.08. In the first game he got Gunathilaka out caught behind, before taking three catches of his own. He demonstrated his high work ethic both with the ball and in the field during the series: with respectable numbers to show for it, too. B

Adil Rashid (3 matches, 4 wickets, ave 12.50)

It’s never an easy gig as a leg-spinner in T20, but Rashid managed to take four wickets in the series at the cost of 50 total runs. He dismissed Kusal Perera, the Sri Lankan skipper, in the opener, with a change of length that tempted the batsman into lofting the ball right into the arms of a grateful Chris Jordan. He followed up in the second match by getting the same man, returning figures of 2 for 17. B+

^{Moeen Ali played just one match}

SRI LANKA

Kusal Perera (3 matches, 54 runs, ave 18.00)

The skipper has had more memorable series but was one of the better performers in the Sri Lankan top order. His best was a 30 in the opening game, coupled with a 21 and three to follow. As a captain, he made respectable and logical choices in terms of rotation and field selection, but his squad were simply outplayed. C+

Danushka Gunathilaka (3 matches, 26 runs, ave 8.66)

Not a great series for the opener, it must be said. Innings of three and four runs respectively set the tone for his batting lineup. His dismissal in Southampton, whereby he allowed a delivery well wide of off-stump to find its way to Dawid Malan at slip, unfortunately summed up his series. D

Oshada Fernando (1 match, 19 runs, ave 19.00)

The top-order batsman only appeared once, at Southampton. He struggled to find the middle of the bat and added 19 off 26 balls before falling victim to a clever change of length from Sam Curran. B-

Avishka Fernando (2 matches, 6 runs, ave 6.00)

The opener played both games in Cardiff and will want to erase them quickly. He went for six and then a duck respectively; both of his dismissals holing out to a grateful fielder. D

Kusal Mendis (3 matches, 54 runs, ave 18.00)

Mendis impressed during the second T20I at Cardiff, his 39 the highest individual score of the match. The same form wasn’t recreated either side of that game, however, with returns of six and nine runs respectively. C+

^{Dushmantha Chameera impressed for Sri Lanka}

Niroshan Dickwella (2 matches, 14 runs, ave 7.00)

Batting at No.5, Dickwella was brought into the middle order for the second and third games of the series. He suffered a similar fate to the rest of his side as he failed to reach two digits in either on unforgiving British surfaces. C

Dhananjaya de Silva (1 match, 3 runs, ave 3.00)

Not much to say about de Silva, the middle-order bat, here. He managed three runs before being quickly dismissed by Mark Wood. Always harsh when you’re dropped after a bad game. C

Dasun Shanaka (3 matches, 65 runs, ave 21.66)

Shanaka should be pleased with the way he batted. He completed a half-century for his side in the opening fixture, though he couldn’t replicate it in the remaining games with 7 and 8 respectively, but his 50 was the fourth-highest individual score in the series, and the best for Sri Lanka. B

Wanindu Hasaranga (3 matches, 9 runs, ave 3.00, 2 wickets, ave 37.00)

You can forgive his run total for the fact that he comes in at No.7, but mainly because he was fairly handy with the ball for his side. He dismissed both Sam Billings and Jason Roy in the second T20 at Cardiff, finishing the series with a respectable economy of 6.72. B+

Isuru Udana (3 matches, 25 runs, ave 25.00, 3 wickets, ave 36.66)

It was a mixed series for the allrounder, whose best performance was in the second match at Cardiff. He dismissed Eoin Morgan and also returned seven dot balls which slowed down the chase. B-

^{Wanindu Hasaranga caught the eye}

Binura Fernando (2 matches, 20 runs, ave 20.00, 2 wickets, ave 37.00)

One of Sri Lanka’s better players. He dismissed Jonny Bairstow for 0 with a brilliant delivery in Cardiff which demolished the off stump, before adding 20 runs with the bat in Southampton. B

Akila Dananjaya (2 matches, 2 runs, ave -, 0 wickets, ave -)

In his two appearances at Cardiff, he bowled 0-40 and then 0-13 off seven balls. Thwacked around by the England batting attack, it’s one he’ll want to forget. D

Nuwan Pradeep (1 match, 2 runs, ave -, 0 wickets, ave -)

Not a memorable cameo for the bowler - he delivered two overs in the opener, conceding 23 runs for no wicket. C-

Lakshan Sandakan (1 match, 3 runs, ave -, 0 wickets, ave -)

The wrist-spinner was drafted in for the final game of the series with the result decided, he bowled 0-28 and added three runs with the bat. Not one for the history books. C

Dushmantha Chameera (3 matches, 1 run, ave 1.00, 6 wickets, ave 11.66)

The 29-year-old was by far the best player that the visitors had to offer. Finishing on six wickets - the highest in the series from either side. His final game at Southampton really was excellent, as he mowed through the English top and middle order, registering figures of 4 for 17. A

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