Delhi: In the 30th match of the T20 World Cup 2026 played in Pallekele, Sri Lanka performed brilliantly and secured its place in the Super-8 stage by defeating Australia by 8 wickets. While chasing the target of 182 runs, Sri Lankan batsmen showed aggressive style and won the match in just 18 overs. The hero of this victory was Pathum Nissanka, who completely neutralized the Australian bowling by scoring a stormy century.

Australia’s strong start, then sudden decline

Batting first, Australia made a strong start. Captain Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head added runs quickly for the first wicket and put the team in a strong position by making a partnership of 104 runs in 51 balls. Marsh scored 54 runs in 27 balls, while Head scored 56 runs in 29 balls. However, after this explosive start, the Australian innings faltered and the team lost wickets at regular intervals. The middle order could not live up to the expectations and the entire team was bundled out for 181 runs.

Great comeback of Sri Lankan bowlers

After the break of Marsh-Head partnership, Sri Lankan bowlers made a strong comeback in the match. Dushan Hemantha destroyed the Australian middle order by taking three wickets, while Dushmantha Chameera achieved two wickets. Mahesh Teekshana, Dunith Velazquez and Kamindu Mendis also curbed the run rate by taking one wicket each. The lower order batsmen could not even reach double figures, due to which Australia missed out on scoring a big score.

Sri Lanka’s restrained start while chasing the target

The Sri Lankan team, which came to chase the target of 182 runs, got the initial blow early, when Kusal Perera was out after scoring only one run. After this, Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis took over the innings and made an important partnership for the second wicket. Both the batsmen led the team towards victory by maintaining a balance of wisdom and aggression.

Mendis’s half-century, Nissanka’s century

Kusal Mendis, playing the role of wicketkeeper batsman, played a useful inning of 51 runs in 38 balls, which made the target easy. After his dismissal, Pawan Ratnayake provided excellent support to Nissanka and removed the pressure by scoring fast runs. Ratnayake scored 28 runs in 15 balls.

Pathum Nissanka’s historic innings

Pathum Nissanka batted fearlessly and scored unbeaten 100 runs in 52 balls. His innings included 10 fours and 5 sixes. This also became the highest individual score for Sri Lanka in the T20 World Cup. Nissanka once again proved that he is a player in big matches and has the ability to win matches even under pressure.

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