Pakistan survive thrilling Sri Lanka fightback but miss out on T20 World Cup semi-finals

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New Zealand reached the T20 World Cup semi-finals after Pakistan exited despite a five-run victory against already-eliminated Sri Lanka in Pallekelle.

An inferior net run rate meant Pakistan had to win big against Sri Lanka in order to pip New Zealand and join group leaders England in the last four.

They racked up 212-8 after Sahibzada Farhan (100) and Fakhar Zaman (84) combined in a T20 World Cup record 176-run opening stand to give them hope.

Pakistan had to restrict their opponents to 147 or less to make the last four, but Sri Lanka finished on 207-6, nearly snatching a victory.

Sahibzada Farhan slammed a brilliant hundred but it was not enough for Pakistan to progress (AP)

Pavan Rathnayake made 58 and Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka smoked an unbeaten 76 off 31 balls.

“It was always challenging after losing the toss because of dew,” Pakistan captain Salman Agha explained. “It could have been a different story had we won the toss.

“We couldn’t execute plans. We couldn’t bat well throughout the tournament. If Farhan had more support, it’d have been better. The middle order has been a problem for a few years now, so we’ll have to look at that.”

The fourth semi-finalists will be determined by a winner-takes-all clash between India and the West Indies in Kolkata on Sunday. South Africa are already through from Group One.

Reuters