Sri Lanka out of semi-final race, New Zealand defeated by 61 runs

New Zealand proved its strength in Super-8 by defeating Sri Lanka

Colombo. New Zealand achieved a resounding 61-run victory against Sri Lanka in the Super-8 match of the T20 World Cup 2026 played at the R Premadasa Stadium. After this defeat, the Sri Lankan team is out of the title race.

Stagnation in Sri Lanka’s batting

Sri Lanka, chasing the target of 169 runs given by New Zealand, managed to score only 107 runs for 8 wickets. Kamindu Mendis scored 31 runs and Dunit Velalge gave some support to the team by scoring 29 runs. For New Zealand, Rachin Ravindra took four wickets for 27 runs, which led his team to significant success.

Fall of wickets in the beginning

The Sri Lankan innings got off to a bad start when Matt Henry clean bowled Pathum Nissanka on the first ball. Its streak of losing stakes continued. Kusal Mendis scored 11, Charith Asalanka scored 5, Pawan Ratnayake scored 10 and captain Dasun Shanaka returned to the pavilion after scoring just 3 runs. In the end, even Kamindu Mendis’s contribution was not enough for the team.

Turning point in New Zealand’s batting

Sri Lankan off-spinner Mahish Theekshana put New Zealand in trouble with the loss of 4 wickets early, however a brilliant partnership between captain Mitchell Santner (47 runs) and Cole McConkie (31 not out) took them to 168 for 7. An important partnership of 84 runs was played between the two players for the seventh wicket.

speed in the last overs

Santner hit four sixes and two fours in 26 balls. At the same time, McConkie hit three fours and two sixes in 23 balls. New Zealand added 70 runs in the last four overs, while the Sri Lankan bowlers played slowly in the final overs.

position in points table

In the points table of Group 2, England has qualified for the semi-finals with two wins in two matches. New Zealand are now in second place with 3 points, while Pakistan is on one point. Sri Lanka has no points. If Pakistan wins their next match and New Zealand loses against England, the matter will depend on the net run rate.