CWC 2023: Sri Lanka Crush West Indies to Set Up Final Against Netherlands

Harare, July 7: Sri Lanka cruised to an eight-wicket victory over West Indies in the ICC Super Six on Tuesday, setting up a final against Netherlands on Sunday.

The West Indies were put in to bat first and were bowled out for 243 in 49.2 overs. Shai Hope top-scored with 87, but the rest of the batting lineup failed to fire. Maheesh Theekshana was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka, taking four wickets for 34 runs.

In reply, Sri Lanka chased down the target with ease, reaching 244-2 in 43.3 overs. Pathum Nissanka scored 104 and Dhananjaya de Silva made 73, putting on a 190-run opening partnership.

The West Indies bowlers struggled to get the ball to swing, and they were also guilty of dropping a few catches. Once Nissanka and de Silva were dismissed, Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama saw Sri Lanka home with an unbroken 54-run partnership.

The win was a major boost for Sri Lanka, who have now won four of their five matches in the Super Six. They will be looking to carry their momentum into the final against Netherlands.

• Sri Lanka’s opening partnership was the key to their victory. They put on a record-breaking 190-run partnership for the first wicket, which is the highest opening partnership in the history of the ICC Super Six.
• The West Indies bowlers struggled to get the ball to swing. The Harare Sports Club pitch is known to be a good batting surface, but the West Indies bowlers were unable to get the ball to move off the seam. This allowed the Sri Lankan batsmen to score freely.
• Maheesh Theekshana was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka. He took four wickets for 34 runs and was the only bowler to take more than one wicket. Theekshana is a left-arm spinner, and he was able to extract turn from the Harare Sports Club pitch.
• Sri Lanka will be looking to carry their momentum into the final against Netherlands. They have won four of their five matches in the Super Six, and they will be confident of winning the final. The Netherlands are a good team, but they will be no match for Sri Lanka if they play to their potential.

Next Match

Sri Lanka will play Netherlands in the final of the ICC Super Six on Sunday. The match will be played at Harare Sports Club.