Pakistan pulled off a 5-run win over Sri Lanka, but it wasn’t enough to keep their World Cup hopes alive. They batted first and put up a strong 212, but the real challenge was to win big—they couldn’t let Sri Lanka score more than 147. That didn’t happen. Sri Lanka almost chased it down, ending with 207. So, even though Pakistan won, they’re out, and New Zealand moves on to the semis.
The last over was wild. Sri Lanka needed 28 to win, and Shaheen Afridi had the ball. First ball, Shanaka smacked a four. Then he sent the next three balls sailing for sixes—suddenly, the impossible looked possible. With two balls left, Sri Lanka needed just 6 runs. But Shanaka couldn’t connect, missing both deliveries. Pakistan took the match, but it didn’t change a thing for them. Their World Cup run ends here.
Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bowl first. Pakistan put up 212 runs for 7 wickets in their 20 overs. Sri Lanka needed 213 to win, but they only managed 207 for 6 in their 20 overs. So Pakistan took the win, but even then, they missed out on a spot in the semi-finals. Sahibzada Farhan took home Player of the Match for his brilliant century.
Pakistan had one job—keep Sri Lanka under 147 runs to make the semis. They just couldn’t pull it off. New Zealand joined England in the semi-finals from Group 2. Both New Zealand and Pakistan ended up with three points each, but New Zealand’s better net run rate pushed them through. Sri Lanka didn’t win a single game in the Super 8s.
Sahibzada Farhan was on fire—he hit his fifty in just 32 balls and reached his hundred in 59, finally getting out for 100. Fakhar Zaman smashed a half-century off 27 balls and scored 84 before getting out. Khawaja Nafe only managed 2 runs. Shadab Khan chipped in 7, Mohammad Nawaz got out for zero, and captain Salman Agha also went for a duck. Shaheen Afridi lost his wicket after scoring 4. Dilshan Madushanka did the most damage for Sri Lanka, picking up 3 wickets. Pakistan only scored 14 runs in their last 12 balls and lost 6 wickets in that final stretch.
Over in the Sri Lankan chase, Pathum Nissanka fell early for 3. Kamil Mishara scored 26, Charith Asalanka added 25, Janith Liyanage made just 5, and Kamindu Mendis contributed 3. Pawan Ratnayake hit a solid half-century in 32 balls and went out for 58. Dasun Shanaka was the star—he blasted his fifty with a six in just 24 balls and finished unbeaten on 76 off 31 balls, smacking 8 sixes and 2 fours. He really put on a show. For Pakistan, Abrar Ahmed took the most wickets, bagging 3.
Brief Scores:
Pakistan 212/8 in 20 overs (Sahibzada Farhan 100, Fakhar Zaman 84, Dilshan Madushanka 3-33) beat Sri Lanka 207/6 in 20 overs (Dasun Shanaka 76*, Pavan Rathnayake 58, Abrar Ahmed 3-23) by 5 runs.
