Pakistan exited the T20 World Cup despite a five-run win against Sri Lanka in the Group Two Super 8s match in Pallekele on Saturday. Their inferior net run rate meant Pakistan needed to win convincingly to beat New Zealand and join group winners England in the semi-finals.
“When I lost the toss it was always a challenge [bowling second] because of the dew,” said Pakistan captain, Salman Ali Agha. “Then it was a very good pitch and it was going to be a challenge to keep them below 148. But we tried. I think if I had won the toss it could have been a different story.”
Pakistan scored 212 for eight after Sahibzada Farhan (100) and Fakhar Zaman (84) combined to set a T20 World Cup record of 176 runs. Fakhar hit 84 off 42 balls with four sixes and nine fours. Farhan hit five sixes and nine fours to take his total for the tournament to 383, a T20 World Cup record, passing Virat Kohli’s 319 in 2014.
That meant they had to restrict their opponents to 147 or less to reach the last four, but Sri Lanka finished on 207 for six with Pavan Rathnayake making 58 and Dasun Shanaka hitting an unbeaten 76 from 31 balls.
Pakistan were in danger of failing to defend their highest T20 World Cup total. Shanaka started the last over against Shaheen Shah Afridi by going 4, 6, 6, 6. Sri Lanka then needed six off the last two balls. Shanaka missed trying to score the fifth ball and left the sixth, a yorker, as he thought it went wide.
England, New Zealand and South Africa are in the semi-finals, while India and the West Indies will play for the last place on Sunday.
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