Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup run just fell apart after their early win over Australia in the tournament. Since their loss to Zimbabwe, they haven’t found their footing at all. In the Super 8s, things went from bad to worse. First, England thrashed them and now New Zealand hammered them by 61 runs.
The big problem is the Lankan batters just didn’t show up. Chasing 169, they managed only 107 runs. That’s two heavy defeats in a row, and with that Sri Lanka are out of the World Cup. Meanwhile, New Zealand picked up three points from a win and a draw, putting them in a great spot for the semi-finals.
At the R. Premadasa Stadium, Sri Lanka won the toss and decided to bowl first. New Zealand started horribly, with Sri Lankan spinners tearing through their top order and leaving them at 84/6. But then Mitchell Santner and Cole McConchie, batting down at number eight, turned things around.
Santner smashed 47 off just 26 balls, sending the ball to the boundary six times, while McConchie stayed unbeaten on 31 from 23 balls. Thanks to their effort, New Zealand finished with 168 for seven in 20 overs. Maheesh Theekshana and Dushmantha Chameera both grabbed three wickets each for Sri Lanka.
But when it was Sri Lanka’s turn to chase, things fell apart fast. Rachin Ravindra, stepping in as a makeshift spinner, just ran through their lineup. Along with Matt Henry, he ripped out seven wickets in a hurry and Sri Lanka were struggling at 77 for seven. There was no real fightback. They crawled to 107 for 8 in their 20 overs, nowhere near the target.
New Zealand wrapped up a crushing 61-run win and basically secured their place in the semis. Rachin Ravindra starred with the ball, picking up four wickets for 27 runs in his four overs, while Henry took two. For Sri Lanka, it’s the end of the road.
Brief Scores:
New Zealand 168/7 in 20 overs (Mitchell Santner 47, Cole McConchie 31*, Maheesh Theekshana 3-30, Dushmantha Chameera 3-38) beat Sri Lanka 107/8 in 20 overs (Kamindu Mendis 31, Rachin Ravindra 4-27, Matt Henry 2-3, Mitchell Santner 1-19) by 61 runs
New Zealand Playing XI: Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson
Sri Lanka Playing XI: Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (wk), Charith Asalanka, Pavan Rathnayake, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka (c), Dunith Wellalage, Dushan Hemantha, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka
