Sri Lanka captain urges government to protect players’ mental health after ‘embarrassing’ T20 World Cup exit

Sri Lanka’s captain, Dasun Shanaka, has claimed that the relentless criticism directed at his players has severely impacted their mental health and undermined their performance at the T20 World Cup, from which they were eliminated from the group stage on Wednesday.

The tournament co-hosts had faced significant criticism from fans and pundits alike for their shaky preparations, which included losing five of six white-ball matches against England.

Their exit was confirmed after a second successive Super Eights defeat, with New Zealand securing a decisive victory.

Shanaka offered an apology to supporters for their "embarrassing" display but also suggested that the pervasive negativity had reached a point where authorities needed to intervene.

"No matter how we as cricketers try to stay positive, there is negativity outside," Shanaka told reporters following their defeat in Colombo.

He added: "We will play and leave, but for the players who will come in the future, if the government can even stop it, that's better for their mental health."

Chasing 169 for victory, Sri Lanka found themselves reeling at 46-5 by the 11th over and never looked likely to recover.

"Honestly, we are very sorry for what happened. No one goes out there to fail, everyone goes with the intention of playing well and winning for the team," Shanaka stated.

The team also contended with the absence of three key bowlers – Wanindu Hasaranga, Matheesha Pathirana, and Ehsan Malinga – due to injuries, which proved a major setback. Shanaka stressed the importance of fitness, calling it "non-negotiable."

"When you have the number of injuries we've had, it's hard to get a good outcome," he explained.

"Your fitness level influences your injuries. There are some players who can't even get into the team because of fitness issues. That's something we've talked about a lot over several World Cups now."

Adding to the concerns, former captain Kumar Sangakkara warned that Sri Lanka risked becoming irrelevant in the global cricket landscape.

"There is a lot of work to be done at all levels to course correct," he posted on X.

"We can’t do the same things over and over and expect different results when the cricket world around us has evolved so quickly. We haven’t adapted and the danger is irrelevance."