 "Marcus Stoinis smashes fastest-ever fifty by an Australian during T20 World Cup clash against Sri Lanka - Watch")
Marcus Stoinis was at his lethal best as he destroyed the Sri Lankan attack en route to scoring the fastest T20I fifty by an Australian as the hosts got their T20 World Cup campaign back on track with a seven-victory over Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Notably, Sri Lanka, who set a tricky 158-run target for the hosts, stayed in the hunt for the most part of the game but a devastating knock by Stoinis, who scored an unbeaten 59 off 18 balls with the help of four fours and six sixes, took the game away from the reigning Asian champions as Australia chased down the target with 21 balls to spare.
In the process, Stoinis completed his half-century in just 17 balls thus scoring Australia’s fastest-ever T20I fifty as he broke the previous record jointly held by David Warner and Glenn Maxwell, who had taken 18 deliveries to cross the 50-run mark. Stoinis’ fifty was also the second-fastest at a T20 World Cup. Fastest 50s in T20 World Cups by balls faced:
- 12 Yuvraj Singh vs Eng Durban 2007
- 17 S Myburgh vs Ire Sylhet 2014
- 17 M Stoinis vs SL Perth 2022
Talking about the match, chasing 158, dangerous David Warner perished cheaply and skipper Aaron Finch was unable to break the shackles, increasing the pressure on the hosts. Finch struggled to 24 off his first 35 balls and ended up with 31 off 42 balls.
The joint-second-fastest fifty in the men's T20 World Cup 💥
— ICC (@ICC) October 25, 2022
Outstanding innings from Marcus Stoinis 🙌🏻#AUSvSL | #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/rRIHMeooVw
Mitchell Marsh scored a run-a-ball 17 before Glenn Maxwell came up with a couple of sixes and fours in his 12-ball 23 to release some pressure. During his short stay, Maxwell suffered a nasty blow on the right side of helmet grill while trying to pull a rising delivery from Lahiru Kumara. The all-rounder fell attempting another big hit but substitute Ashen Bandara took a brilliant catch very close to the deep midwicket boundary to leave Australia at 89 for three in the 13th over. However, a quickfire half-century from all-rounder Stoinis and his 69-run partnership with skipper Finch helped defending champions Australia register a crucial seven-wicket win over Sri Lanka in their Group 1, Super 12 match of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup at Perth on Tuesday. Stoinis also earned the ‘Man of the Match’ award for his match-winning half-century. With this win, Australia is in fourth position in the points table with 2 points, one place below Asian champions Sri Lanka, who are in third with two points.
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