After Bangladesh, it is defending champions West Indies which is now officially out of the semifinal contention. Everyone expected West Indies to perform well in this tournament but the team never seemed good enough to be in contention. In its fourth league match against Sri Lanka, West Indies couldn’t chase the target of 190 and ended up scoring 169/8 in 20 overs. Shimron Hetmyer’s lone fight wasn’t good enough and the Windies lost the match by 20 runs.
Windies had the batting power to chase the high target. But just like the previous games in this World Cup, none of the batters has put up a responsible show. Barring Nicholas Pooran (46) and Shimron Hetmyer (81*), the rest of the other batters showed absolutely no intent and got out miserably. If they had at least supported Hetmyer, West Indies could have easily won the match. Binura Fernando (2/24), Wanindu Hasaranga (2/19) and Chamika Karunaratne (2/42) scalped two wickets each for Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, Lankans have put up a spectacular show with the bat in the first innings. Openers Kusal Perera (29) and Pathum Nissanka (51) made a partnership of 42 runs for the first wicket. After Perera’s dismissal, Nissanka and Asalanka (68) made a partnership of 91 runs and laid the foundation for a high total. Even though Nissanka got out in the 16th over after completing his half-century, Asalanka built another valuable partnership with Shanaka (25*). With valuable contributions from all the top-order batters, Sri Lanka managed to score 189/3 in 20 overs. Andre Russell (2/33) claimed two wickets for West Indies.
Sri Lanka has completed all five games of the Super 12 league stage. With three losses and two wins, it is also out of contention for the semifinal qualification. Meanwhile, West Indies will take on Australia in its last league game on November 6.