Khwaja powers Australia to win over Bangladesh

Australia got their first points at the T20 World Cup after beating Bangladesh by three wickets in Bangalore on Tuesday. A breezy half century by opening batsman Usman Khwaja helped the Aussies overhaul Bangladesh’s target with nine balls to spare.

Despite the win, Australian Captain Steve Smith said his team needs to improve to qualify for the semi-finals. REUTERS/Hamish Blair

Batting first, Bangladesh posted a challenging 156 runs in 20 overs. The bulk of the scoring was done by Mahmudullah who scored an unbeaten 49. Shakib al-Hassan and Mohammad Mithun were the other important contributors with 33 and 23 runs respectively.

Leg spinner Adam Zampa, who was adjudged the man of the match, was instrumental in restricting Bangladesh’s total as he claimed three wickets for just 23 runs.

Australia got off to a flying start as openers Khwaja and Shane Watson put on a 62-run partnership.

At one point the Australians were cruising at two for 115 in 13 overs. Thereafter, they suffered a mini-collapse, losing five wickets for just 35 runs. However, this was not enough for Bangladesh as Australia successfully chased the target in the 19th over.

Shakib al-Hassan was the standout Bangladeshi bowler with figures of three for 27 in four overs.

West Indies, South Africa win

Earlier, South Africa and West Indies registered emphatic victories over Afghanistan and defending champions Sri Lanka respectively.

While Andre Fletcher’s unbeaten 84 floored defending champions Sri Lanka, De Villiers’s quickfire 64 helped the Proteas beat Afghanistan.

Batting first, Sri Lanka scored just 122 runs in their allotted 20 overs at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore.

The 28-year-old Fletcher smashed an unbeaten 84 in just 64 balls as West Indies chased down Sri Lanka’s score with seven wickets in hand.

South Africa scored their first win of the tournament courtesy De Villiers who scored 64 runs in just 29 balls.

South Africa scored an imposing target of 210 runs for Afghanistan, who fell short by 37 runs. Chris Morris’s four wicket haul helped South Africa restrict Afghanistan to 172.

Having won both their matches, West Indies sit top of Group One on four points with South Africa, Sri Lanka and England all on two. In Group Two, New Zealand are on top with four points followed by Pakistan, Australia and India on two points each.