Twitter Reactions: Spirited Netherlands go down fighting as Sri Lanka make their way to the Super 12 round

Sri Lanka have progressed into the Super 12 stages of the T20 World Cup 2022 after a hard fought-win against the Netherlands and survived a late scare from Max O 'Dowd. Kusal Mendis’s excellent knock at the top of the order alongside Wanindu Hasaranga’s top spell ensured the Island nation got into the next round with a win by 16 runs. 

Earlier in the game, Sri Lanka opted to bat first after winning the toss and the openers did start off slowly with not many boundaries coming in the powerplay. Paul van Meekeren went through a great spell with the ball as he picked up Pathum Nissanka and Dhananjaya de Silva in back-to-back deliveries to leave Sri Lanka at 36 for 2 in the seventh over. 

A fantastic 60-run partnership between Charith Asalanka and Kusal Mendis for the third wicket helped the Island nation to restore things. Bhanuka Rajapaksa played a handy knock of 13-ball 19 after Asalanka’s dismissal while Kusal Mendis reached a magnificent century. Lower-order contributions alongside Mendis’ 79 off 44 balls took Sri Lanka above the 160-run mark. Van Meekeren was the pick of the bowlers with 2 for 25 in his four overs. 

Wanindu Hasaranga seals the game with a three-wicket haul

In reply, Netherlands lost an early wicket in the form of destructive batter Vikramjit Singh who scored just seven runs. Bas de Leede hit a six and a four in his quickfire knock of 14 while Colin Ackermann was dismissed for a first-ball duck leaving the Dutch side at 47 for 3 in the seventh over. Tom Cooper and Max O Dowd took their time to stitch a partnership however, they never got into the chase. 

Skipper Scott Edwards’ innings of 15-ball 21 did keep the hopes for the Netherlands alive for a while, however, four wickets fell for just nine runs to break the hearts of the Dutch fans. Max O Dowd started to hit some lusty blows, in the end, to get closer to the target. The right-hander remained unbeaten on 71 off 53 balls as Netherlands ended up 16 runs short of the target. 

Here's how the Twitter reacted to Sri Lanka's win: