Sri Lankan opener Kusal Mendis slammed a 44-ball 79 as the Asian champions beat the Netherlands by 16 runs to sweep into the Super 12 stage of the Twenty20 World Cup on Thursday.
The world's eighth-ranked team plundered 162-6, blasting 102 of them off the final 10 overs to set up a big target which the Dutch were unable to reach, finishing on 146-9, reports BSS.
In which Super 12 group they will play; will be determined after the later game in Geelong between Namibia and United Arab Emirates (UAE).A win for the African side will knock out the Dutch and send them through, as they already have a superior net run rate. If the UAE upset Namibia, the Dutch will progress to super 12.
It is the third successive time Sri Lanka have reached the Super 12 and they will be hoping to repeat their heroics from 2014, when Dinesh Chandimal skippered them to the title.
But it was a rocky road to get there, stunned by Namibia in the tournament's opening game before crushing UAE and now the Netherlands.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
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