T20 World Cup 2022: England Beats Sri Lanka, Advance To Semis

England defeated Sri Lanka by four wickets on Saturday to advance to the T20 World Cup semi-finals and knock out reigning champions Australia.

Sri Lanka's captain, Dasun Shanaka, won the toss and elected to bat first. Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis got things started quickly, putting up a 39-run partnership in four overs. Mendis's stay at the crease was interrupted by Chris Woakes, but Nissanka continued to play strong strokes and reached a well-made fifty. However, the other batsmen struggled to bat on the pitch, with Dhananjaya de Silva and Charith Asalanka both removed for single-digit scores. Bhanuka Rajapaksa was the only hitter to reach double digits as Sri Lanka scored 141 runs in 20 overs for the cost of eight wickets. Mark Wood picked up three wickets for 26 runs in three overs.

With England needing 142 runs to win, Jos Buttler and Alex Hales got England off to a fast start, scoring 75 runs for the first wicket in eight overs. Hasaranga's wicket provided Sri Lanka with their first breakthrough. Hales smashed 47 off 30 balls Hales' 30-ball including seven boundaries and one six.

The Sri Lankan bowlers applied pressure and reduced the equation to 13 off 13 balls, and Kumara took Sam Curran's wicket to make things interesting heading into the last two overs. 

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