Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka heaped praise on Dhananjaya de Silva after his match-winning 66 against Afghanistan on Tuesday. Sri Lanka kept their semi-final hopes alive with a six-wicket win over Afghanistan.

Dhananjaya guided Sri Lanka home to keep their semi-final hopes alive (Courtesy: AP)

By India Today Web Desk: Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka reserved special praise for Dhananjaya de Silva after the right-handed batter’s match-winning knock of 66 against Afghanistan on Tuesday.

In a must-win game in Brisbane, the bowlers did their job well with Wanindu Hasaranga leading the way with three wickets to restrict Afghanistan to 144 runs in their 20 overs.

In response, Sri Lanka had a slow start but Dhananjaya timed his knock well and ensured that his team got home with six wickets to spare and kept them in the hunt for a spot in the semi-finals.

Speaking after the match, as quoted by Cricbuzz, Shanaka said it was a good performance from his team with both bat and ball. The skipper then praised Dhananjaya for his unbeaten knock, saying that the right-handed batter showed that in T20Is it is not always about taking the bowlers on and timing his innings well.

Shanaka then praised the bowlers for putting the ball in the right areas. He said that the team had found some consistency in the match today and it would be important to continue in the next game. The skipper also said that Sri Lanka would be aiming to win their final match at a healthy rate.

“It was a good performance from bat and ball. DDS played a classy innings. He showed that in T20 it’s not all about taking the bowlers on, he timed his innings. Credit to him and Wanindu. The bowlers bowled in the right areas. We found some consistency today, what is important is to continue in the next game as well. The other games are beyond our control, but we are aiming to win our next game with a healthy rate which gives us a good chance to qualify,” said Shanaka.

Sri Lanka will take on England in their final match on Saturday.