Jos Buttler’s England side progressed to the semi-final on Saturday after defeating Sri Lanka by 4 wickets in a last-over rubber in Sydney, knocking out Australia, the hosts, the defending champions, and the tournament favorites.
England finished second and join New Zealand, who finished as the group topper, as the two semi-finalists from Group 1 while Australia failed to do so because of inferior NRR to the other two despite all three having 7 points each.
Ben Stokes stepped up with the bat finally in the tournament – and in the most crunch situation for England so far, with their semi-final spot of the T20 World Cup 2022 on the line.
The left-hander scored 42 unbeaten runs off 36 balls stroking only 2 boundaries – this is what England needed after their chase of 142 against Sri Lanka was made tricky because of a flurry of wickets and a collapse that threatened England’s semis dreams.
England bowlers had done well with the ball to restrict Sri Lanka to 141 after quick starts from Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka, who scored 67 off 45 balls. Leg-spinner Adil Rashid was named the Man of the Match for his keeping things tight in the middle overs and returning with figures of 1/16 in 4 overs. Mark Wood snapped 3 wickets.
In the chase, England got off to a cracking start as Alex Hales whacked 47 off 30 balls while Buttler played anchor scoring 28 off 23 balls and both forged a 75-run stand in 7.2 overs.
However, after that England collapsed with only Ben Stokes standing at one end. They slipped from 75/0 to 111/5 and 129/6.
Despite not getting boundaries, Stokes kept his calm and knocked the ball in the gaps for singles and doubles and kept the required rate down to 6 and lower after the rapid start from the openers. Stokes and Woakes got England off the line with some smart batting and swift running between the wickets.
Updated points table Group 1 of T20 World Cup 2022 after ENG vs SL match:
New Zealand will play the first semi-final in Sydney against the team which finishes second in Group 2; England will play the topper of Group 2 in the second semifinal in Adelaide.
In group 2, 5 out of 6 six teams have a chance to qualify for the semi-final with the Netherlands being the only side eliminated.
