England has propelled from the Super 12 stage to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. England hinged on to their last game with all their might to ensure a 7-points finish in the Group 1 points table. Managing a better net run rate than Australia, England is now the second and last team from the group to qualify for the playoffs. New Zealand has already taken its parade past the playoffs mark.
England beat Sri Lanka in their final Super 12 game by a mere margin 4 runs. Sri Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka chose to bat first winning the toss at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Shanaka and co. scored a subtle 152 target for England despite an ideal start from their opener Pathun Nissanka. However, Adil Rashid boasted an economical spell in the first innings, successfully limiting the Lankans to a considerably low score.
For England, Buttler and Alex Hales hung around for some time before Hasaranga scalped Buttler’s wicket. Hales missed out on a half-century as he walked off at the score of 47, with Hasranga picking up a caught and bold dismissal. The chase expected to be pretty easy turned into an actual thriller toward the later part of the second innings. However, Ben Stokes led his team to victory with his undefeated knock of 42 off 36.
Now, out of the four slots available in the semi-finals, two are occupied by New Zealand and England. Hosts and the defending T20 World Cup champions, Australia failed as Sri Lanka failed. Now, it’s on Group 2 to deliver their top contenders to the playoffs. India and South Africa are the stronger contenders. However, the chances are still open for Pakistan if either India or South Africa falters in their last game.
