AUS vs SL highlights, T20 World Cup 2026: Sri Lanka beat Australia by 8 wickets to enter Super Eight

Marcus Stoinis to Pathum Nissanka, FOUR! A shot of real authority! On a back of a length, on top of the sticks, Pathum Nissanka stays back and pulls it between deep mid-wicket and long on for a boundary.

Marcus Stoinis to Pathum Nissanka, Stoinis flirts with the tramline, outside off on a fuller length, Pathum leaves.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Mendis, Full and on middle, Kusal flicks to get it past mid-wicket and mid on, but Maxwell dives to his right from mid on and cuts it off. Just a single or else it was running away.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Mendis, A sharp bumper, over middle, Kusal ducks under it.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Mendis, FOUR! Shot! Back of a length around fifth stump at 130.1 kph, Kusal Mendis opens the face and steers it neatly through the gap between backward point and short third for four.

Marcus Stoinis is back on. 1-0-4-1 so far. He replaces Nathan Ellis.

Cooper Connolly to Pathum Nissanka, FOUR! Brilliantly done! Short of a length around off at 98.4 kph, Pathum Nissanka rocks back and carves it through the gap between backward point and short third for four.

Cooper Connolly to Pathum Nissanka, Length ball on middle and leg, Pathum Nissanka nudges it neatly towards deep mid-wicket and comes back for a couple.

Cooper Connolly to Pathum Nissanka, SIX! KABOOM! Arm ball on a probing length around fifth stump, Pathum Nissanka shuffles across and executes a daring reverse sweep, getting it airborne and clearing the deep third fence for a six.

Cooper Connolly to Pathum Nissanka, Arm ball on a length around middle and leg. 95.6 kph. Nissanka defends it to cover.

Cooper Connolly to Pathum Nissanka, Full around middle and leg. Nissanka drives it back to the bowler.

Cooper Connolly is into the attack now.

Cooper Connolly to Kusal Mendis, Around the wicket. Full toss angling down the leg side. Mendis looks to play the sweep shot behind square on the leg side. He hits it from the toe end to the right of mid on for a single.

Nathan Ellis to Kusal Mendis, That back-of-the-hand slower ball, full and on off, Mendis presses forward and dabs it in front of point for a quick single.

Nathan Ellis to Kusal Mendis, AUSTRALIA LOSE A REVIEW! On a back of a length, zoning in on middle and leg, Kusal Mendis tries to whip it across the line, but gets rapped on the front thigh pad. A massive appeal goes around from the Aussies for LBW, but the umpire is unmoved. Mitchell Marsh runs to Ellis and after a chat, sends it upstairs for a review. No bat involved as the replay itself shows a clear gap between the bat and the pad. All the Australian players head back to their fielding spots before the Ball Tracking loads up. It finally comes and shows the ball projected to miss the leg stump. Australia lose one of their two reviews.

Nathan Ellis to Kusal Mendis, WIDE! Far outside off, on a fullish length, Mendis lets it be. Wide called.

Nathan Ellis to Kusal Mendis, SIX! Packed and dispatched! Ellis goes full and onto the pads. Kusal Mendis gets inside the line and whips it aerially, and deposits it into the stands behind long leg. That has travelled many a mile.

Nathan Ellis to Kusal Mendis, Ellis hits the deck hard, skids through on off, Kusal Mendis tries to jam it back at the bowler, but gets an inside edge on the pads before the ball rolls back to Ellis.

Nathan Ellis to Kusal Mendis, At pace now, full in length, on middle, Mendis flicks it to short mid-wicket.

Nathan Ellis to Pathum Nissanka, A slower one to begin with, full and on the pads, Nissanka whips it wide of short fine leg for a single.

Nathan Ellis replaces Marcus Stoinis.

Xavier Bartlett to Kusal Mendis, FOUR! Elegant placement! On a back of a length, around off. Kusal waits on it, opens the bat face late and finds the gap between short third and backward point for a boundary.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, Slammed hard into the pitch, over middle, Nissanka swivels and pulls it to deep backward square leg for a run.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, WIDE! Bartlett tries the slower one, but misfires it down leg, full in length. Pathum Nissanka tries to whip it but misses.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, Nice and full, on off, Nissanka tries to force the drive to cover, but inside edges it onto the back pad as the ball jags back in a touch.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, Good gas! At 136.3 kph. On a back of a length, angling into the bodyline. Pathum Nissanka hops off and drops it down the pitch.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, FOUR! Two in two for Pathum! A bit too straight and short by Xavier, on a good length. Pathum Nissanka uses the pace, stays put and helps it to deep fine leg for a boundary.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, FOUR! Not convincingly timed, but effective enough! Fuller and on middle and off, Nissanka walks down the track and heaves it to over and to the left of mid on for a boundary.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Mendis, On middle and off, pushed towards mid on. A wicket and 4 runs from the Hulk's opener.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Mendis, A short ball, around off, Kusal Mendis gets across and looks to pull but is cramped for room. Gets it off the glove through fine leg. Excellent work by Nathan Ellis as he charges to his right from deep backward square leg and dives to push the ball away, saving the boundary. Keeps the batters to a couple.

Marcus Stoinis to Pathum Nissanka, Hurrying the batter, who manages to push it to the off side for a quick run.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Mendis, Very full, outside off, Mendis eases this through point for a single.

Australia manage to strike with the new ball. One Kusal replaces another as Mendis walks in at number 3, replacing Perera.

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Perera, OUT! CAUGHT! The Sanath Jayasuriya version of the current generation departs cheaply. A short ball, outside off, there to be hit and Perera does hit it. Goes hard at that, but the extra bounce does him in. The ball hits the higher part of the bat and goes very high in the air. Also, he has to reach out for the ball as well, which reduces the power on the shot. Nathan Ellis is waiting for it patiently at deep point and takes the catch. Stoinis has a look at the batter, as if to give a send off, but Perera is not interested. SRI LANKA ARE 8/1. Equation - 174 RUNS, 112 BALLS!

Marcus Stoinis to Kusal Perera, Excellent work by Josh Inglis. On a length, outside off, Kusal Perera looks to cut but is too close to the ball. Gets a bottom edge which flies past the off stump, heading towards fine leg but the keeper dives to his right and makes a stunning stop.

Interesting over. Dew is certainly present and the ball has certainly started to come onto the bat a lot nicely as compared to the first innings. Marcus Stoinis will share the new ball.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, The length is held back a touch. Outside off, PN looks to punch but misses. The bowler is interested in the caught behind appeal, but none of his mates look to agree. 8 from the opening over and the Lankans are up and running.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, Half volley, wide outside off, Pathum drives it beautifully again, but finds cover in his way.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, SIX! Bye bye ball! Full and straight, sliding onto the pads, Pathum Nissanka uses the extra pace and flicks this beautifully over backward square leg. There is a fielder at the ropes but the ball flies way over! 174 more needed from 116 balls.

Xavier Bartlett to Kusal Perera, Full, around middle and leg, Kusal Perera comes forward and looks to flick but is squared up as the ball moves away a bit. Gets a leading edge which flies through point. No one to catch that as the fielder is at the ropes. A run taken.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, On a length, outside off, skidding through, Nissanka hops back and steers it behind point to get off the mark with a single.

Xavier Bartlett to Pathum Nissanka, On a length, around off, Pathum Nissanka is watchful in defense.

Welcome back for Sri Lanka's response with the bat. Mitchell Marsh leads his troops out as the Aussies spread to their respective fielding spots. Pathum Nissanka is joined by Kusal Perera as the two walk out to open for Sri Lanka. A slip in place and it will be Xavier Bartlett to bowl the first over. Nissanka will take the strike. Here we go!

... THE RUN CHASE ...

A big challenge ahead - 181 might look less given the way Australia started off, say, 15-20 short from an Aussie perspective. But by no means is it a stroll in the park while chasing. The highest successful run chase in Pallekele in the T20Is is 177, and this score also is in thereabouts of that figure. Australia cannot afford to lose this game as then it will make their chances very bleak for the Super Eights. A Sri Lanka win will make them get through to the next stage from this group. Be right back with the run chase. Stay tuned.

A tug of war in the second half - For Sri Lanka, it was always about who steps up in the absence of Wanindu Hasaranga. With Maheesh Theekshana enduring a rough outing, barring his final over, Dushan Hemantha delivered with a sharp 3 for 37. There were costly lapses though. Josh Inglis dropped on nought and Glenn Maxwell reprieved on 18 made Sri Lanka pay, as both showed their dexterity in patches. Still, to Sri Lanka's credit, they kept chipping away with wickets with Australia slipping from 160/4 to being bowled out on 181. The last three overs went for just 13 runs which extinguished the Aussie hopes of crossing the 200-run mark.

You live by the sword, and die by it - A gazillion boundaries later, just when it looked like a total wipeout, Dushan Hemantha flipped the script by removing Head. That one crack opened the floodgates. From domination to disarray, Australia lost their top four in a flash. They kept swinging, but the same aggression turned rogue. Marsh, Head, Tim David and Cameron Green all perished playing the same high-risk tune.

Wham, bam, slam to start - Australia's opening woes took a backseat as Mitchell Marsh came out in overdrive, with Travis Head matching that intent ball for ball. The early exit of Matheesha Pathirana due to a hamstring injury only made things worse for Sri Lanka as runs flowed like a broken tap. 70/0 in the Powerplay, and it felt like a boundary buffet. Marsh went full beast mode against Maheesh Theekshana, stitching five fours on the trot and leaving Sri Lanka chasing shadows.

Pendulum Pandemonium - After a seesaw of emotions in both the dugouts, it will be the Sri Lankans who will head to the dressing room as the happier of the two sides. They were left mere spectators with 110/2 in the first 10 overs, but they roared back in style, conceding 71/8 in the next ten. Sri Lanka were simply outstanding in the field, giving a good account of themselves in a crucial game. Whereas Australia started off brilliantly, but couldn't get the desired propulsion in the end.

Adam Zampa is the last batter in, replacing Xavier Bartlett.