Glenn Phillips' blistering century and four-wickets by Trent Boult firmed New Zealand's top spot in Group 1 on Saturday evening after handing over a crushing defeat to Asian champion Sri Lanka. New Zealand vs Sri Lanka was the only match on Saturday which brought out the best of the Blackcaps as they registered a 65-run victory.
Despite early tremors in their innings, New Zealand cruised ahead well as Glenn Phillips smashed his second T20I century with the help of four maximums and ten boundaries. Phillips got much-needed assistance from Daryl Mitchell with his 22 off 24 balls.
In response to 167, Sri Lanka succumbed to Trent Boult's fierce pace as the experienced bowler clinched four wickets in the game to finish with his best-ever T20I figures. Kusal Mendis (4 off 3), Dhananjaya de Silva (0 off 3), Charith Asalanka (4 off 8), and Dasun Shanaka (35 off 32) were notable dismissals of Trent Boult.
Meanwhile, Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi picked two wickets each in the second innings. For his magnificent ton, Glenn Phillips was awarded with Player of the Match award. With that win, New Zealand are likely to qualify for the semifinals as they have now 5-points after three games.
Notably, New Zealand have won two games and shared one point with Afghanistan as the match was abandoned due to rain. On the other hand, Sri Lanka have slipped to the bottom of Group 1 after two defeats in three games.
Here's the updated T20 World Cup 2022 points table after today's game:
