New Delhi: Sri Lanka batter Kusal Mendis slammed his third straight fifty in the T20 World Cup 2026 to achieve a rare feat. Mendis notched up a half-century
in his side’s thirdgroup-stage clash against Australia at the Pallekele International Stadium in Pallekele on Monday, February 16. He became only the 2nd Sri Lankan and the fifth batter overall to score three consecutive fifty-plus scores in a T20 World Cup.
Mendis played a sublime knock of 51 runs off just 38 balls to continue his purple patch against Australia in the T20 World Cup 2026. The wicket-keeper batter joined hands with opener Pathum Nissanka to set the stage for a successful chase for Sri Lanka after the hosts were set a challenging target of 182 runs by Australia in Pallekele.
Sri Lanka got off to a shaky start in the chase, losing opener Kusal Perera cheaply on 1 in the second over. However, Mendis combined with his opening partner Nissanka to get Sri Lanka’s chase back on track. Mendis slammed 51 off 38 balls, laced with six fours and a six to add a magnificent 97-run stand for the second wicket with Nissanka.
The stand between the duo helped Sri Lanka dominate the proceedings after their poor start and shift the momentum in their favour. Mendis also achieved the rare feat of scoring three back-to-back fifty-plus scores in a T20 World Cup. He became the second Sri Lankan to do so after former captain Mahela Jayawardene and joined the likes of Virat Kohli and Babar Azam in an elite list.
Batters with three consecutive fifty-plus scores in T20 World Cup:
Mahela Jayawardene
Virat Kohli
Babar Azam
KL Rahul
Kusal Mendis*
