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3rd T20I | England vs Sri Lanka T20I Series | Old Trafford, Manchester | 19 September 2026
Three injuries didn’t just weaken England’s squad for this series; they forced two uncapped players into international cricket within a week. Phil Salt, Sam Curran and Jacob Bethell are all missing through injury, which is how a 29-year-old county veteran with zero caps ended up opening the batting in a T20I. Ahead of the third match at Old Trafford, what’s replaced them says as much about county cricket’s depth as it does about anything Sri Lanka have done wrong.
Phil Salt is out for the entire series with a quadriceps issue and did not travel with the squad. Sam Curran needed surgery on a groin injury sustained during The Hundred in August and will miss the rest of the home summer entirely. Jacob Bethell remains in rehabilitation after knee surgery, still on course but unavailable for selection.
That is three specialist top-order and all-round options gone before a ball was bowled in this series, which is a significant chunk of England’s white ball depth to lose all at once. Jofra Archer was also rested for the series opener as part of the same broader squad management, adding a fourth name to the list of absentees.
Aneurin Donald, Jamie Overton and Sonny Baker came in to cover the gaps. Donald’s call-up is the most eye-catching of the three: a maiden selection at 29 that made him the oldest specialist batter to debut for England in the format since Dawid Malan back in 2017.
Overton missed the earlier series against India through injury of his own and returns having recovered, while Baker adds to a single existing cap picked up against Ireland last September. None of the three arrived as like-for-like replacements, which tells its own story about squad depth right now, a reminder of how thin the margins can get for England.
Donald’s call-up wasn’t built on reputation; it was built on recent numbers. He hit 489 runs in this year’s Vitality Blast at a strike rate of 230.66, the tournament’s highest total, adding a high score of 91 and four fifties along the way.
His Hundred campaign for Trent Rockets was just as loud, a strike rate of 217.46 that topped every player who batted in five or more innings in the competition. Three seasons combined for Derbyshire now read 1,253 runs at a strike rate above 200, numbers no domestic selector could keep ignoring forever, no matter how unconventional the timing of an international debut at 29 might look.
Not every replacement arrived as a stranger to the dressing room. Will Jacks brings 45 caps and Tom Banton more than 27, both established white ball players rather than emergency cover. Liam Dawson’s international story stretches back a full decade, debuting against this same opponent, Sri Lanka, in July 2016.
Jordan Cox and Sonny Baker sit at the other end of that scale, with six and one cap, respectively, while James Coles is yet to actually debut despite an initial call-up back in June. Gus Atkinson, with four caps of his own, last played international T20I cricket in January 2025, a reminder of how much rotation this format demands.
The predicted XI for the third T20I is expected to carry over unchanged from the series opener, built around the batting order below.
| Player | Role | Position |
| Aneurin Donald | Batter | 1 |
| Jos Buttler | Wicketkeeper Batter | 2 |
| Harry Brook (c) | Batter | 3 |
| Jordan Cox | Wicketkeeper Batter | 4 |
| Tom Banton | Wicketkeeper Batter | 5 |
| Will Jacks | All-rounder | 6 |
| Jamie Overton | All-rounder | 7 |
| Liam Dawson | Spin All-rounder | 8 |
| Josh Tongue | Bowler | 9 |
| Adil Rashid | Leg-spin Bowler | 10 |
| Sonny Baker | Fast Bowler | 11 |
No official changes had been confirmed at the time of writing, and England have generally preferred continuity across this series. Whatever team walks out at Old Trafford, this England vs Sri Lanka T20I series squad changes story has already answered the question it set out to ask: English white ball cricket clearly has more depth in reserve than the first choice XI alone ever suggested.
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Who is Aneurin Donald and why is he playing for England now?
Aneurin Donald is a 29-year-old Derbyshire opener who earned his first England call-up for this series. He debuted on September 15, England’s oldest T20I batting debutant since 2017.
Why is Sam Curran not playing against Sri Lanka?
Curran is out for the rest of the home summer after groin surgery in August. He picked up the injury during The Hundred and was replaced in the squad by Jamie Overton.
Is Phil Salt injured for the Sri Lanka T20I series?
Yes, Salt is unavailable for the entire series with a quadriceps injury. He did not travel with the England squad for any of the three matches.
How many T20I caps does Jordan Cox have?
Jordan Cox has six T20I caps, having debuted against Australia in September 2024. He remains the second least experienced batter in England’s squad, behind only debutant Aneurin Donald.
Who is in England’s predicted XI for the third T20I?
The XI is expected to be unchanged from the series opener, led by Harry Brook. Aneurin Donald and Jos Buttler are set to open the batting again at Old Trafford.
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