Sri Lanka got off to a disappointing start to ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 as they suffered a 6-wicket defeat at the hands of South Africa at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
Opting to bat first, Sri Lanka got off to a shaky start as they lost the opening batter Pathum Nissanka for just 3 runs in the fourth over of the innings.
Things went from bad to worse as Anrich Nortje and Keshav Maharaj ripped through Sri Lanka’s middle order.
Sri Lanka didn’t help themselves either with their approach. A slew of mishits and set of desperate slogs put the islanders in absolute disarray. Sri Lanka were eventually bowled out for just 77 runs in 19.1 overs which is their lowest score in T20Is.
The speedster Nortje was brilliant with the ball for the Proteas as he grabbed 4 wickets for just 7 runs in his 4-over spell. Kagiso Rabada and Maharaj also picked up 2 wickets each for South Africa.
- Sri Lanka vs South Africa – ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 – Match Report
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Though the target of 78 looks easy on paper, it wasn’t a straightforward run-chase for South Africa as Sri Lanka fought hard with the ball. Nuwan Thushara got the Proteas opening batter Reeza Hendricks early in the innings for just 4 runs.
Dasun Shanaka dismissed the South African skipper Aiden Markram for 12 runs in the 5th over of the innings. Wanindu Hasaranga also took two wickets in two consecutive overs to create some panic in South African camp.
However, Heinrich Klaasen hit a six and a four in Hasaranga’s final over to ease the tension as the Proteas crossed over the line in the 17th over with 6 wickets in hand.
Sri Lanka will rue the fact that they didn’t assess the pitch and conditions correctly and didn’t show application in their batting essay on a tricky New York pitch at the end.
Sri Lanka will meet Bangladesh in their second game of the tournament on the 8th June at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas.
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | c Heinrich Klaasen b Ottneil Baartman | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 37.50 |
| Kusal Mendis | c Glenton Stuurman b Anrich Nortje | 19 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 63.33 |
| Kamindu Mendis | c Reeza Hendricks b Anrich Nortje | 11 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 73.33 |
| Wanidu Hasaranga | st Quinton de Kock b Keshav Maharaj | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Sadeera Samarawickrama | b Keshav Maharaj | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Charith Asalanka | c Reeza Hendricks b Anrich Nortje | 6 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 66.67 |
| Angelo Mathews | c Ottneil Baartman b Anrich Nortje | 16 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 106.67 |
| Dasun Shanaka | b Kagiso Rabada | 9 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 90.00 |
| Maheesh Theekshana | not out | 7 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 43.75 |
| Matheesha Pathirana | c Aiden Markram b Kagiso Rabada | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Nuwan Thushara | run out (Marco Jansen) | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 6 (b 0 , lb 3 , nb 0, w 3, pen 0) |
| Total | 77/10 (19.1 Overs, RR: 4.02) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marco Jansen | 3.1 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 4.84 | |
| Kagiso Rabada | 4 | 1 | 21 | 2 | 5.25 | |
| Ottneil Baartman | 4 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 2.25 | |
| Keshav Maharaj | 4 | 0 | 22 | 2 | 5.50 | |
| Anrich Nortje | 4 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 1.75 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quinton de Kock | c & b Wanidu Hasaranga | 20 | 27 | 0 | 1 | 74.07 |
| Reeza Hendricks | c Kusal Mendis b Nuwan Thushara | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 200.00 |
| Aiden Markram | c Kusal Mendis b Dasun Shanaka | 12 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 85.71 |
| Glenton Stuurman | c Charith Asalanka b Wanidu Hasaranga | 13 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 46.43 |
| Heinrich Klaasen | not out | 19 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 86.36 |
| David Miller | not out | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Extras | 6 (b 0 , lb 3 , nb 1, w 2, pen 0) |
| Total | 80/4 (16.2 Overs, RR: 4.9) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angelo Mathews | 3 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 5.33 | |
| Nuwan Thushara | 3 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 6.00 | |
| Dasun Shanaka | 3 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 2.00 | |
| Matheesha Pathirana | 3 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 4.00 | |
| Wanidu Hasaranga | 3.2 | 0 | 22 | 2 | 6.88 | |
| Maheesh Theekshana | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3.00 | |
