Day eight of the ICC World Twenty20 got closer to a situation wherein almost every mach had a ‘do-or-die’ tag involved. Semi-final berths are up for grabs and teams are vying for it – giving it all they have.

New Zealand defeated England by 5 runs
There was a point when it looked like the second bowl-out of the tournament was waiting to occur. In the crucial match against England, Craig McMillan came into bat to join Scott Styris with his team in a troubled state at 31-4. The need of the hour was to consolidate but McMillan went on the attack and ensured he took the English bowlers to the cleaners.

England started their run-chase of 165 in great style, with opener Darren Maddy scoring a quick fire half-century. Inspired performances by Bond and Vettoi, who took two wickets a piece ensured that England fell short by 5 runs.

Pakistan defeated Australia by 6 wickets
Two nights in a row the Pakistani side produced a staggering performance. They managed to restrict the Aussies to a modest total of 164 – young left-arm seamer Sohail Tanvir was the pick of the bowlers, ending up with figures of 3/31 from his four overs.

Later, it was the turn of Misbah-ul-Haq and captain Shoaib Malik to guide their team to a colossal victory, especially after they were in totters at 46-4, with their top four batsmen back in the hut. The two batsmen scored unbeaten half-centuries to ensure Pakistan clinched a convincing 6-wicket victory.

With the victories, Pakistan and New Zealand inch one step closer to a semi-final berth.

Sri Lanka defeat Bangladesh by 64 runs
The World Cup Finalists proved their superiority against the emerging Bangladeshi side. Initially, the Lankans were put under a lot of pressure by some quality spin bowling. They struggled to gather any momentum – managing a meager 147 at the end of twenty overs.

In fact, Sri Lanka were reeling at 90-4 in 15 overs. Some lusty hitting in the end from Mubarak and Dilshan got them to a reasonable total. Bangladesh never looked comfortable against Vaas, Fernando and the rest. They lost wickets on a consistent basis and never threatened any of the Sri Lankan bowlers.

Dilhara Fernando and old war-horse Chaminda Vaas picked up two wickets a piece and attained an easy victory in the end for Sri Lanka, by 64 runs. The 1996 CWC winners will have to defeat Australia in a virtual quarter final match to qualify for the semi-final.

Day eight of the ICC World Twenty20 got closer to a situation wherein almost every mach had a ‘do-or-die’ tag involved. Semi-final berths are up for grabs and teams are vying for it – giving it all they have.

New Zealand defeated England by 5 runs
There was a point when it looked like the second bowl-out of the tournament was waiting to occur. In the crucial match against England, Craig McMillan came into bat to join Scott Styris with his team in a troubled state at 31-4. The need of the hour was to consolidate but McMillan went on the attack and ensured he took the English bowlers to the cleaners.

England started their run-chase of 165 in great style, with opener Darren Maddy scoring a quick fire half-century. Inspired performances by Bond and Vettoi, who took two wickets a piece ensured that England fell short by 5 runs.

Pakistan defeated Australia by 6 wickets
Two nights in a row the Pakistani side produced a staggering performance. They managed to restrict the Aussies to a modest total of 164 – young left-arm seamer Sohail Tanvir was the pick of the bowlers, ending up with figures of 3/31 from his four overs.

Later, it was the turn of Misbah-ul-Haq and captain Shoaib Malik to guide their team to a colossal victory, especially after they were in totters at 46-4, with their top four batsmen back in the hut. The two batsmen scored unbeaten half-centuries to ensure Pakistan clinched a convincing 6-wicket victory.

With the victories, Pakistan and New Zealand inch one step closer to a semi-final berth.

Sri Lanka defeat Bangladesh by 64 runs
The World Cup Finalists proved their superiority against the emerging Bangladeshi side. Initially, the Lankans were put under a lot of pressure by some quality spin bowling. They struggled to gather any momentum – managing a meager 147 at the end of twenty overs.

In fact, Sri Lanka were reeling at 90-4 in 15 overs. Some lusty hitting in the end from Mubarak and Dilshan got them to a reasonable total. Bangladesh never looked comfortable against Vaas, Fernando and the rest. They lost wickets on a consistent basis and never threatened any of the Sri Lankan bowlers.

Dilhara Fernando and old war-horse Chaminda Vaas picked up two wickets a piece and attained an easy victory in the end for Sri Lanka, by 64 runs. The 1996 CWC winners will have to defeat Australia in a virtual quarter final match to qualify for the semi-final.