New Zealand and Australia earned comfortable wins against Sri Lanka and Afghanistan respectively on day three of the 2019 ICC World Cup.
In the first match of the day, New Zealand proved to be too strong for the Sri Lankans in a ten-wicket victory at the Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.
Asked to bat first, the Lankans were bowled out for a paltry 136 in 29.2 overs. New-ball bowler Matt Henry was the star for the Kiwis with figures of 3/29 from 7 overs. He was also named the player of the match. Captain Dimuth Karunaratne with 52 off 84 was the top-scorer for the 1996 champions.
In reply, New Zealand didn’t lose a single wicket and chased down the total in just 16.1 overs. Openers Martin Guptill and Colin Munro remained unbeaten on 733 off 51 and 58 off 47 respectively.
In the second match of Saturday, Australia outclassed a spirited Afghanistan to win by seven wickets at the County Ground in Bristol.
Opting to bat first, the Afghans were bowled out for a meagre 207 in 38.2 overs. Middle-order batsman Najibullah Zadran was the top scorer for them with 51 off 49. Pat Cummins and Adam Zampa picked three wickets apiece for the Aussies.
The defending champions chased down the total with ease in 34.5 overs. David Warner, declared player of the match, got the most runs scoring 89 not out off 114 balls.
Here are all the important statistics from day three of the 2019 ICC World Cup:
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