Zimbabwe humble Sri Lanka with six-wicket win

COLOMBO: T20 World Cup surprise package Zimbabwe beat Sri Lanka by six wickets in Colombo Thursday to finish the group stage unbeaten and carry some winning momentum into the Super Eights.
Chasing 179 they finished 182-4 with three balls to spare against the co-hosts at the R Premadasa stadium in Colombo.
Ranked 11th in the world, Zimbabwe upset former champions Australia last week.
They also beat Oman and shared the points when their game against Ireland was washed out on Tuesday.
Zimbabwe needed a tricky 65 off 36 balls when captain Sikandar Raza blasted 20 off an over from leg-spinner Dushan Hemantha, including two sixes and a four, to swing the match.
Raza and Brian Bennett added 69 off 40 deliveries for the third wicket and though Raza fell in the 19th over for 45, Zimbabwe eased to their target.
Opener Bennett batted through the innings to be 63 not out.
Needing eight off the final over, Tony Munyonga clubbed Maheesh Theekshana's first ball for six to calm any Zimbabwe nerves before Bennett hit the winning boundary.
'We have trained for every situation. Then we have the right personnel to send in at the right time,' said Raza, who was named player of the match.
'We have got all those roles clear and that is why you see the confidence in the changing room.'
It was Zimbabwe's second highest successful run chase in T20 internationals.
After opting to bat first, Pathum Nissanka held Sri Lanka's innings together again.
Nissanka had become the first centurion of the tournament against Australia on Monday and he followed that up with a solid 62 off 47 balls.
It was his seventh fifty in T20 World Cups, equalling Mahela Jayawardene for the most by a Sri Lankan.
Wicketkeeper batter Kusal Mendis said Sri Lanka now target a place in the semifinals.
'It's been a good campaign for us. We have three big games coming up and we have played these three teams frequently in the last 12 months — going to be an interesting week,' said Mendis.
'I have never played a semifinal of an ICC event and looking forward to do well and book a semifinal berth.'
Sri Lanka open their Super Eights campaign against England in Kandy on Sunday, while Zimbabwe will face the West Indies in Mumbai on Monday.
WINDIES POST 42-RUN VICTORY
The West Indies tuned up for the T20 World Cup Super Eights in perfect fashion on Thursday with a comfortable 42-run victory over Italy in their final group match in Kolkata.
After being asked to bat, the West Indies captain Shai Hope scored 75 off 46 balls with four sixes to help his side post 165-6 in the dead rubber Group C clash.
They then easily defended the total by bowling out Italy for 123 off 18 overs.
'I always try to contribute. Wicket was a good one; felt like I could've given the team more impetus at the death,' said Hope, who was named player of the match.
Italy finished with one win in four matches at their debut World Cup, and Hope said it wasn't easy when his side did not know many of the opposition players.
'When you face unfamiliar opposition, you plan but are unsure. You are facing many bowlers for the first time,' he said.
'They bowled well in patches, it was tough to score early on. You have to be ruthless early on.'
Italy lost regular wickets and were always behind in their chase in the face of tight bowling by the West Indies.
JJ Smuts took 27 balls to score 24 as Italy failed to break the shackles in the middle overs.
Ben Manenti whacked 26 off 21 balls before having his stumps shattered by Gudakesh Motie with four overs to go, and from 115-7 the rest folded quickly.
Pace bowler Shamar Joseph took a superb 4-30 backed up ably by fellow seamer Matthew Forde, who had 3-19.
Joseph also had a great day in the field and became the first player to take four wickets and four catches in a T20 international.
Left-arm spinner Motie was the pick of the slow bowlers, finishing with 2-24 from his four overs.
The West Indies will face Zimbabwe in Mumbai on Monday to kick off their Super Eights campaign, with clashes against South Africa and co-hosts India to follow. — AFP