West Indies must win the Sabina Park decider or hand Sri Lanka the series
Rain wiped out the second ODI, so the three-match series comes down to one game at Sabina Park, where West Indies have to beat Sri Lanka to avoid a home series defeat.
Jun 8, 2026
Rain took the decision out of everyone’s hands in the second match. Now Sri Lanka and West Indies get one more go at settling it. The third and final one-day international at Sabina Park on Monday is a straight shootout for the series, with Sri Lanka 1-0 up and West Indies needing a win simply to avoid surrendering the series at home.
Sri Lanka set the tone in the opener on June 3, posting 303 for 7 and defending it comfortably. Pathum Nissanka anchored the innings with 79, Kusal Mendis raced to 72 off 62 balls, and there were useful contributions down the order from Charith Asalanka and Janith Liyanage. West Indies never quite kept pace in the chase, falling 41 runs short on 262 despite Shai Hope’s 56, with Dushmantha Chameera’s four for 67 breaking the back of the reply.
A washout that suited the hosts least
The second match was abandoned without a ball that mattered, and the rain did West Indies no favours. A 1-1 scoreline would at least have kept the series alive on equal terms. Instead they arrive at the decider already behind, knowing a defeat hands Sri Lanka the series and leaves the hosts beaten on their own ground.
There is more than pride riding on it for Shai Hope’s side. West Indies sit tenth in the one-day rankings, outside the automatic qualification places for the 2027 World Cup, and every ranking point counts before the cut-off next year. A home series loss to a side above them in the table is exactly the kind of result they can no longer afford.
Sri Lanka in control
Sri Lanka have problems of a happier kind. Their top order clicked in the first match, their seamers found enough movement with the new ball, and Maheesh Theekshana and Chameera give them control through the middle overs. Sitting sixth and comfortably clear of the qualification cut-off, they can play this one with the freedom of a team already a result to the good.
The toss could matter more than usual. Rain has hung around Kingston all week, and with showers forecast again, both captains will want to bowl first and keep the Duckworth-Lewis maths on their side. A wet ball and a damp outfield tend to make chasing the safer bet, and neither side will need reminding of it.
What to watch
For West Indies, the batting has to fire as a unit rather than leaning on Hope alone. Justin Greaves showed some fight late in the first innings, but West Indies need runs at the top of the order rather than another late rescue act. For Sri Lanka, it is about closing out a job they have all but finished, and another Nissanka start would go a long way toward doing it.
Play is due to begin in the afternoon Kingston time and run into the night. If the weather holds, this has the makings of a tight finish to a series Sri Lanka have controlled from the first ball.