Dasun Shanaka and his patched-up Sri Lanka squad have rebounded from an upset tournament-opening loss to qualify for the second round of the Twenty20 World Cup with a 16-run win over Netherlands in their last game of the preliminary stage.
The former champions and three-time finalists were under intense pressure after the lopsided loss to Namibia last Sunday, but put together composed, back-to-back wins over United Arab Emirates and Netherlands to ensure a spot in the Super 12 stage that starts this weekend.
“We missed out in the first game, but we regrouped and came back strongly,” Shanaka said after Thursday’s win in Geelong, praising the resilience of his injury-hit squad.
The top two teams in each of the first-round groups will join the top eight teams in the next phase.
Sri Lanka and Netherlands had two wins apiece in Group A but the Sri Lankans finished with a far superior net run rate. That left the Dutch team needing UAE to beat Namibia to have any chance of advancing. The UAE won the toss in that game and opted to bat first.
Sri Lanka won the toss and batted in the day’s first game and posted a competitive 162 for six on a two-paced wicket before restricting Netherlands to 146 for nine.
Netherlands had been on top of the group after opening with narrow wins over Namibia and UAE but wasn’t able to challenge Sri Lanka.
The Dutch started off the game well, keeping the Sri Lankan batsmen quiet.
Paceman Paul van Meekeren was the pick of the bowlers, dismissing Pathum Nissanka and Dhananjaya de Silva in successive deliveries, but the Dutch attack faded and conceded 102 runs in the last 10 overs.
Kusal Mendis equaled his career best T20 international score of 79 and almost carried his bat through. He faced 44 deliveries and hit five fours and five sixes before being dismissed in the last over. By then, he had done the damage.
Netherlands was never really in the run chase, with spinners Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga sharing five wickets between them.
Opener Max O’Dowd batted through the inning but played a mostly lone hand and finished with an unbeaten 71 off 53 deliveries, including six fours and three sixes.
Despite qualifying for the second round, Sri Lanka has major injury concerns with three players already ruled out of the tournament. And opening batter Pathum Nissanka didn’t field against Netherlands as he had been taken for a precautionary scan. Pramod Madushan, who played the game against UAE, is recovering from a hamstring injury but is expected to be fit for the second round.
“We had a bad first game. We were not too sure of the conditions but I guess after that we settled down and played really well,” said Mendis, who was voted player of the match. “I just tried to bat the first 10 overs and once I was set, I tried to cash in.
“In Australia conditions are different from what we get at home and it’s not ideal to smash everything from first over. You’ve got to get set first. Once you get a start, you need to make most of it.”
Netherlands captain Scott Edwards rued the missed opportunity, which left them relying on other results.
“We knew 150 was a par score. Max O’Dowd was superb for us today top of the order but he didn’t get much support from rest of the batters,” he said. “It’s a cut throat tournament and 15 to 20 runs could make a big difference and you can get knocked out.
“That’s the nature of the competition.”
