Sri Lanka knocks Australia out of T20 World Cup with Nishanka’s century

New Delhi: The matches are going on in full swing in the group stage of ICC T20 World Cup 2026. In the match played between Sri Lanka and Australia on Monday, host Sri Lanka performed brilliantly and won. With this result, Sri Lanka has confirmed its place in the Super-8.

At the Pallekele ground, the Sri Lankan team, with its powerful batting, defeated Australia by 8 wickets, not only winning the match but also becoming the first team in the group to qualify for the Super-8. With this defeat, the danger of being out of the tournament has increased for former champion Australia.

Pathum Nissanka’s brilliant performance

Sri Lankan opener Pathum Nissanka displayed a unique performance in the match. Chasing the target of 182 runs, Nissanka took a beating from the Australian bowlers, scoring an unbeaten 100 runs in just 52 balls. His brilliant innings included 10 fours and 5 sixes.

Nissanka made a new record

With his century Nissanka crossed an important milestone. He became the second Sri Lankan batsman to score a century in T20 World Cup history, along with this he has also become the highest run-scorer in this tournament, with a total of 137 runs in three matches.

Contribution of Kusal Mendis

Along with Pathum Nissanka’s brilliant performance, Kusal Mendis also hit the Australian attack brilliantly. Mendis made a significant contribution for his team by scoring 51 runs in 38 balls, which included 6 fours and 1 six. In the end, Pawan Ratnayake scored 28 runs in 15 balls to give Sri Lanka victory in 18 overs.

Clouds of trouble for Australia

Earlier, after losing the toss and batting, the Australian team scored 181 runs in 20 overs, but it proved to be less in front of the enthusiasm of the Sri Lankan batsmen. After the defeat against Zimbabwe, now this defeat against Sri Lanka is putting Australia on the verge of elimination. If the equations ahead of them are not favourable, the Kangaroo team may have to face returning home soon.