PALLEKELE, Sri Lanka (AP) — Pathum Nissanka’s unbeaten 100 powered Sri Lanka into the T20 World Cup Super 8s and left former champion Australia’s prospects hanging by a thread on Monday.
Sri Lanka thrashed Australia by eight wickets with two overs to spare. Pavan Rathnayake hit the winning runs straight after Nissanka reached his century off 52 balls and was greeted by massive cheers in Pallekele International Stadium. The packed crowd roared again one delivery later when Rathanayake finished the match with a boundary to deep square.
The third win from three matches ensured Sri Lanka advanced to the second round, two years after failing for the first time at the T20 World Cup in the West Indies.
Meanwhile, Australia could fail to get out of the group stage for the first time since 2009 if unbeaten Zimbabwe beats Ireland on Tuesday.
England also reached the Super 8s after a surviving a scare from Italy in Kolkata. England came back from 105-5 to post 202-7. Italy was cut short on 178.
In New Delhi, Afghanistan shrugged off back-to-back defeats to finally register a win after beating the United Arab Emirates by five wickets. That secured South Africa a spot in the Super 8s.
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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
The Associated Press
