Still hurting from the way he was dumped by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the second leg of the IPL, David Warner showed off his class, smashing a whirlwind 65 off 42 balls, studded with 10 sweetly-timed boundaries, to lead Australia to a facile seven-wicket win over Sri Lanka in their second game of the T20 World Cup at Dubai on Thursday.
Dropped by the Sunrisers after just two games in the second game of the IPL, Warner- who looked to be getting back into touch during his brief 13-run stay in the first game against South Africa- roared back to form to help Australia coast to the 155-run target set by Sri Lanka.
With his opening partner, skipper Aaron Finch (37 off 23, 5×4, 2×6) too firing away in characteristic fashion, Warner laid the foundation for the Aussies before Steve Smith (28 not off 26 balls) and Marcus Stoinis (16 not out off 7 balls) took them home with three overs to spare in a one-sided contest.
Smashing his first fifty in the T20 World Cup in nine years, Warner showed that at 35, he still can’t be written off. The explosive left-hander’s return to form is a warning to other teams in the tournament.
The swashbuckling batsman was heavily criticised for being out of touch in the recently-concluded IPL, but on Thursday, he tore apart the listless Lankan attack with his blistering strokeplay. Fortune too favoured Warner as he was dropped by wicket-keeper Kusal Perera off Dushmantha Chameera when he was on six.
The Aussies thus recorded their second win on the trot in the T20 World Cup, and now are second on the points table, with only net run rate separating them from England. The Lankans now have one win and one loss after two games and are fourth on the table.
Earlier, the Lankans were off to a superb start, then slipped in the middle overs, before recovering well at the finish. Asked to bat first, they scored 154 for six in their Group 1 clash. On a belter of a wicket, the total was at least 20 runs below par.
For a while, the Lankans seemed to be running away to a good total, before the Aussies roared back through Mitchell Starc (2-27), Adam Zampa (2-12) and Pat Cummins (2-34).
After Prabudha Nissanka (7) was out in the third over, Kusal Perera (35, 25b, 4×4, 1×6) and Charith Asalanka (35, 27b, 4×4, 1×6) added 63 in 43 balls in a whirlwind, entertaining partnership for the second wicket, as the Lankans took full toll of the powerplay overs.