Sri Lanka opener Lahiru Thirimanne lauded Kumar Sangakkara after his team's Cricket World Cup win over England on Sunday.

Chasing 310, Sri Lanka reached the target with nine wickets and 16 balls to spare thanks to Thirimanne (139 not out) and Sangakkara (unbeaten 117) in Wellington.

Thirimanne paid tribute to Sangakkara post-match, talking up the importance of the veteran's 86-ball knock.

"I think he played a tremendous knock today that eases the pressure because at that time run rate was about 7, 7.5, so when he came to bat he just rotated the strike and hit boundaries," he said.

"So it was easy for me in the other end because I just wanted to rotate the strike and let Kumar to bat through the innings."

Sri Lanka's victory was, in the end, relatively comfortable after Joe Root (121) had set up a competitive total for England.

But Tillakaratne Dilshan (44) and Thirimanne helped their side make a good start and they capitalised once Sangakkara came to the crease.

The win kept Sri Lanka in second in Pool A, and Thirimanne urged his side to continue their confident run.

"I think anything can happen in this tournament. We were one down when things started, but we came back really hard, but that's not the end," he said.

"We had to play against Australia in the next match, so we want to give a 100 per cent and win that match also, so that's it."