England, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh have reached in the semi-final stage of the ICC Champions Trophy. In the first semi-final England will meet Pakistan on Wednesday in Cardif. In the second semi-final India will meet Bangladesh on Thursday in Edgbaston.
Sarfraz Ahmed's 61 takes Pakistan to semi-final
Skipper Sarfraz Ahmed cracked 61 as Pakistan survived some tense moments before notching up a three-wicket win over Sri Lanka in their must-win Group B match to enter the semifinals of the ICC Champions Trophy at Cardiff on Monday. Pakistan will meet Group A toppers England in the first semifinal on Wednesday at the same venue. Chasing a modest 237 to win, opener Fakhar Zaman (50) cracked a 36-ball 50 at the top but Pakistan suffered an inexplicable collapse to slip to 162-7. Finally, it was Sarfraz Ahmed, who played a resolute captain's knock to take Pakistan home. The wicket-keeper batsman shared 75 runs with Mohammad Amir (28) for the 8th wicket as Pakistan overhauled the target with 31 balls to spare.
Sri Lankan seamers, led by Nuwan Pradeep (3/60), produced a disciplined bowling performance but some sloppy fielding, which included two drop catches of Sarfraz, cost them the match. Earlier, fast bowlers Hasan Ali (3/43) and Junaid Khan (3/40) claimed three wickets each, while Amir (2/53) and Fahim Ashraf (2/37) accounted for two wickets to help Pakistan bowl out Sri Lanka for 236 after electing to field.
Opener Niroshan Dickwella (73) and skipper Angelo Mathews (39) added 78 runs for the fourth wicket but Amir and Junaid took two wickets each in the space of 3.2 overs as Sri Lanka lost four wickets for six runs to slip to 167-7. Lower-order batsmen Suranga Lakmal (26) and Asela Gunaratne (27) offered dogged resistance to take Sri Lankan innings close to the 250-run mark. They added 46 crucial runs for the eighth wicket.
Chasing a modest 237 to win, Fakhar gave Pakistan a flying start as he along with Azhar Ali shared a 74-run opening partnership in 11.1 overs.
India thrash South Africa
India defeated South Africa by 8 wickets on Sunday to enter the Champions Trophy semi-final. Shikhar Dhawan top-scored with 78 runs in India's win, while captain Virat Kohli remained unbeaten on 76. With this win, India moved to the semifinal of the Champions Trophy where they will meet Bangladesh at Edgbaston, Birmingham on June 15.
Earlier, a disciplined Indian bowling performance restricted South Africa to 191 runs in 44.3 overs in the Group B Champions Trophy clash at The Oval. Asked to bat, South Africa were off to a slow but steady start with openers de Kock and Hashim Amla adding 35 runs in the first 10 overs. Opener Quinton de Kock was the highest scorer with 53 runs from 72 balls. Pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar bagged two wickets each.
Star off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin got the breakthrough for India when Amla mistimed a cut and Mahendra Singh Dhoni displayed lighting quick reflexes to glove the top edge. Ravindra Jadeja struck the second blow for India when he knocked back de Kock's off-stump. His dismissal saw the Indian bowlers starting to dominate proceedings as the rest of the South African batsmen displayed poor shot selection at times. Except for AB de Villiers and Jean-Paul Duminy, none of the other SA batsmen were able to reach double figures.
England in semis
England skipper Eoin Morgan and all-rounder Ben Stokes came out with a brilliant batting performance before rain came in as England defeated Australia by 40 runs through DLS method to knock them out of the Champions Trophy at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground on Saturday.
England, chasing 278, were 240-4 after 40.2 overs when rain came in for the second time during the innings and the match was officially called off by the umpires at that stage. The hosts needed to be at 200-4 as per the DLS after 40.2 overs. The Eoin Morgan-led side had a horrific start to their chase as they were left reeling at 35-3 following the dismissals of Jason Roy, Alex Hales and Joe Root and looked in a spot of bother. However, Stokes (102) combined with Morgan (87) to pull England back from the abyss and put them on course for a win.
Australian bowlers were guilty of bowling short and English duo ensured they kept the scoreboard ticking with regular fours and sixes. Stokes played with straight bat and used the pace of the ball while Morgan ran hard along with using the long handle to good effect. The pair meant business and played with a steady head. They ensured there were not many dot balls in the passage of play.
They both shared a 159-run stand before the skipper was run out at the team's score of 194, but not before putting England in a comfortable position.
Jos Buttler, who came next, joined Stokes and made sure the hosts didn't lose any more wickets. Stokes was adjudged the Man of the Match for his all-round performance in the entire match.
Earlier, put in to bat, the Steve Smith-led side rode on the innings of opener Aaron Finch (68) and Travis Head (71) to post 277-9 in their stipulated 50 overs.
Epic win for Bangladesh
Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah scripted one of the most memorable comebacks in ODI cricket as they stitched a 224-run partnership to help Bangladesh overhaul the 266-run target set by New Zealand with five wickets and 16 balls remaining. Bangladesh were reduced to 33-4 in the 12th over when the duo joined hands in the middle. Shakib finished with 114 off 115 balls as Mahmudullah remained unbeaten on 102 off 107 balls.
Bangladesh's effort knocked the Kiwis out of the Champions Trophy. Mossadek Hossain marked his return to the Bangladesh side by taking three wickets as New Zealand slumped to a total of 265 for eight in a must-win Champions Trophy clash at Cardiff on Friday. New Zealand were well set while captain Kane Williamson (57) and Ross Taylor (63) were sharing a stand of 83 - their third fifty partnership in as many matches this tournament. But, as happened in their no-result washout with Australia and defeat by England, the Blackcaps' innings collapsed once the experienced batsmen were out in quick succession.
Mossadek, chosen ahead of fellow offspinner Mehedi Hasan, took two wickets in three balls on his way to impressive figures of three for 13 in three overs.
Fast bowler Taskin Ahmed, Bangladesh's other change to a side that escaped with a no result against Australia, took two for 43 in eight overs.
New Zealand, who had been 152 for three off 30 overs, only managed 113 more runs in the last 20 overs. Given 300 is now generally regarded as a `par score', Bangladesh were on top at the half-way stage.
