{"id":12394,"date":"2026-02-16T19:14:18","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T19:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=12394"},"modified":"2026-02-16T19:14:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T19:14:18","slug":"australia-lose-to-sri-lanka-by-eight-wickets-staring-at-t20-world-cup-exit-icc-mens-t20-world-cup-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=12394","title":{"rendered":"Australia lose to Sri Lanka by eight wickets, staring at T20 World Cup exit | ICC Men&#8217;s T20 World Cup News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>Nissanka\u2019s unbeaten century batters former cricket champions Australia, who now need other results to go their way to survive.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><button class=\"article-listen-container\" aria-labelledby=\"listen-text listen-duration\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-button\"><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"article-listen-container__text\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-text\">Listen to this article<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">\u00a0|\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"article-listen-container__duration\">3 mins<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/button><button tabindex=\"0\" class=\"tooltip-accessible_trigger\"><svg class=\"icon icon--info icon--main-grey-dark icon--16 listen-to-article-tooltip__icon\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\"><title>info<\/title><path class=\"icon-main-color\" d=\"M12 0a12 12 0 1 0 0 24 12 12 0 0 0 0-24Zm-.226 3.225a2.039 2.039 0 0 1 2.155 1.924v.193a1.998 1.998 0 0 1-2.155 2.149 2.029 2.029 0 0 1-2.146-2.15 2.039 2.039 0 0 1 1.955-2.122h.193l-.002.006Zm3.227 15.525a.75.75 0 0 1-.752.75H9.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.75h.748V12h-.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.751h3a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.752v6.75h.75a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.749L15 18.75Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-dates\">\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Published On 16 Feb 2026<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">16 Feb 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share\" data-testid=\"rich-share\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__button-wrapper\"><button class=\"rich-share__button row\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><\/p>\n<p>Click here to share on social media<\/p>\n<p><svg class=\"icon icon--share2 icon--primary icon--16 \" viewbox=\"0 0 20 16\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><title>share2<\/title><path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M11.688 9.048c-.659 0-1.252.282-1.673.733l-4.92-2.45c.016-.115.028-.232.028-.352 0-.117-.011-.23-.027-.343l4.913-2.423a2.285 2.285 0 0 0 1.68.739C12.964 4.952 14 3.899 14 2.6 14 1.302 12.965.25 11.688.25S9.377 1.302 9.377 2.601c0 .117.01.23.027.343L4.49 5.367a2.285 2.285 0 0 0-1.68-.739C1.536 4.628.5 5.681.5 6.979c0 1.299 1.035 2.35 2.312 2.35.659 0 1.252-.281 1.673-.731l4.92 2.45a2.357 2.357 0 0 0-.029.351c0 1.299 1.035 2.351 2.312 2.351S14 12.698 14 11.399s-1.035-2.35-2.312-2.35Z\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>Sri Lanka\u2019s opener Pathum Nissanka scored the first century of the T20 World Cup to put his side into the Super Eights of the cricket tournament and leave Australia on the brink of elimination.<\/p>\n<p>Nissanka scored 100 not out off 52 balls with five sixes and 10 fours as Sri Lanka, chasing Australia\u2019s 181, reached 184-2 with two overs to spare in Kandy to win by eight wickets on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re in the lap of the gods now, I think,\u201d Australia captain Mitchell Marsh said after the match.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLot of emotions in the room right now,\u201d he said of the 2021 champions. \u201cHaven\u2019t been at our best. Disappointed bunch at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nissanka was involved in a 97-run stand off 66 balls with Kusal Mendis for the second wicket, with the wicketkeeper-batsman posting his third fifty in the competition.<\/p>\n<p>Nissanka became the first Sri Lankan to score two hundreds in T20 internationals.<\/p>\n<p>After Mendis\u2019s dismissal, Nissanka and Pavan Rathnayake put on 76 off 34 balls to see Sri Lanka to victory.<\/p>\n<p>Nissanka played some glorious cover drives off the spinners and played some elegant flicks against the quicks.<\/p>\n<p>Rathnayake hit the winning runs straight after Nissanka reached his century off 52 balls and was greeted by massive cheers in Pallekele International Stadium.<\/p>\n<p>The packed crowd roared again one delivery later when Rathnayake finished the match with a boundary to deep square.<\/p>\n<p>Sri Lanka came into the World Cup after a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of England, but have gained momentum and have won all three games so far.<\/p>\n<p>Australia\u2019s campaign has been plagued by injuries.<\/p>\n<p>Their captain Marsh, who missed the first two games, returned and gave them a rollicking start by scoring 54.<\/p>\n<p>Marsh and Travis Head (56) scored 104 runs off 51 balls for the first wicket.<\/p>\n<p>With Australia eyeing a total in excess of 200, Sri Lanka\u2019s slow bowlers kept them to 181 with leg spinner Dushan Hemantha picking up 3-37.<\/p>\n<p>Australia collapsed as they looked for quick runs, losing their last six wickets for 21 in 24 balls.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4318083\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4318083\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-4318083\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AFP__20260216__97R79M6__v1__MidRes__CricketIccMensT20Wc2026SriAus-1771263858.jpg?w=770&amp;resize=770%2C513&amp;quality=80\" alt=\"Australia's captain Mitchell Marsh looks on after his team's loss against Sri Lanka at the end of their 2026 ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup group stage match in the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy on February 16, 2026. (Photo by Ishara S. KODIKARA \/ AFP)\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4318083\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Australia\u2019s captain Mitchell Marsh looks on after his team\u2019s loss against Sri Lanka [Ishara S Kodikara\/AFP]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"super-eights-sri-lanka-through-australia-on-the-brink-of-elimination\">Super Eights: Sri Lanka through; Australia on the brink of elimination<\/h2>\n<p>A victory by Zimbabwe over Ireland in Group B on Tuesday, or against Sri Lanka on Thursday, would eliminate Australia.<\/p>\n<p>If Zimbabwe lose both matches, Australia will need to beat Oman in their final game on Friday by a big margin to get through on net run rate.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Australia could fail to get out of the group stage for the first time since 2009 if unbeaten Zimbabwe beats Ireland on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>England have also reached the Super Eights after surviving a scare from Italy in Kolkata. England came back from 105-5 to post 202-7. Italy were cut short on 178.<\/p>\n<p>In New Delhi, Afghanistan shrugged off back-to-back defeats to finally register a win after beating the United Arab Emirates by five wickets. That helped them stay in the tournament and saw South Africa secure a spot in the Super Eights.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nissanka\u2019s unbeaten century batters former cricket champions Australia, who now need other results to go their way to survive. Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a03 mins info Published On 16 Feb 202616 Feb 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Sri Lanka\u2019s opener Pathum Nissanka scored the first century of the T20 World Cup [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12395,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia-pacific"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}