Twenty20 World Cup: Glenn Phillips rescues Blackcaps before Trent Boult burst seals victory over Sri Lanka

The Blackcaps have taken another step towards reaching the semi-finals of the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia, defeating Sri Lanka by 65 runs at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

A century from Glenn Phillips (104) rescued New Zealand from a disastrous start and lift the Blackcaps to 167/7, before the bowlers - led by Tim Southee and Trent Boult - skittled Sri Lanka for 102.

Boult in particular took the chance to show his worth with the ball, finishing with career-best figures of 4/13 from his four overs, while Southee contributed an economical 1/12 from his.

Glenn Phillips against Sri Lanka.
Glenn Phillips against Sri Lanka. Photo credit: Image - Getty Images

The win sees the Blackcaps become the first team in Group 1 of the Super 12 stage to win two matches, leaving New Zealand just one win away from qualifying for the last four.

After winning the toss and opting to bat first on the same ground that saw them hammer 200 against Australia in their tournament opener, the Blackcaps were left red faced - reduced to 15/3 inside the powerplay.

Finn Allen and Devon Conway were both separately bowled for one, before Kane Williamson was caught behind for just eight.

But in Phillips and Daryl Mitchell (22), the Blackcaps rebuilt. The pair added 84 runs in 64 balls, and set a platform to launch for a big finish.

Sri Lanka did themselves no favours, though, as Phillips was dropped on 12 and 45 on his way to a 39-ball half-century, regularly turning singles into twos at the fielders' expense.

Just as good between the wickets as he was at finding the boundary, it took Phillips just 22 balls to move from 50 to 100, hitting 10 fours and four sixes en route to three figures.

And after taking the score past 100 and then 150, Phillips finally departed in the final over, unable to clear mid-off, but leaving to a standing ovation for 104.

The Blackcaps celebrate as Trent Boult takes a wicket.
The Blackcaps celebrate as Trent Boult takes a wicket. Photo credit: Image - Getty Images

The innings was Phillips' second Twenty20 International century with his first being 108 against the West Indies at Mt Maunganui at the end of 2020.

Phillips also becomes only the second New Zealander to score a century in a Twenty20 World Cup, after Brendon McCullum's 123 against Bangladesh at the 2012 tournament in Sri Lanka.

And after New Zealand's slow start, the new ball pair of Southee and Boult were unleashed on Sri Lanka's top order.

Southee struck with his fifth ball, trapping Pathum Nissanka - the culprit who dropped Phillips on 12 - for a five ball duck, to complete a woeful night for the Sri Lankan opener.

Meanwhile at the other end, Boult struck twice in his first over, removing Kusal Mendis (4) and Dhananjaya de Silva (0) to leave Sri Lanka 5/3.

That became 8/4 in Boult's second over, when Charith Asalanka could only find the hands of Finn Allen at backward point, all but ending Sri Lanka's hopes of victory.

The pair of Bhanuka Rajapaksa (34) and captain Dasun Shanaka (35) both contributed to at least avoid a humiliating defeat, but the Blackcaps bowlers continued to strike.

Spinners Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi returned identical figures of 2/21, while Lockie Ferguson was New Zealand's most expensive bowler, but picked up the wicket of Rajapaksa. 

Boult returned late to dismiss Shanaka, caught by Mitchell at deep square leg to better his career best, before Sodhi had the final say when Lahiru Kumara was stumped by Conway.

The win solidifies New Zealand's position at the top of Group 1, two points clear of England and also boasting a vastly superior net run rate of +3.850 to +0.0239.

The two teams will battle for the upper hand to claim top spot when they meet on Tuesday night at the Gabba, Brisbane.

New Zealand 167/7 (Phillips 104; Rajitha 2/23) Sri Lanka 102/10 (Shanaka 35; Boult 4/13)

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