Adil Rashid credits Sydney track for his heroics against Sri Lanka

Adil Rashid celebrating a wicket with teammates [Source: Twitter]

On Saturday, England sealed their semifinal berth, defeating Sri Lanka by four wickets in a last-over thriller. Chasing 142, England got over the line with two balls to spare, courtesy of a patient 36-ball 42* from Ben stokes. 

Meanwhile, Adil Rashid pulled back the Sri Lankan scoring rate, thus nullifying the blazing start provided by their openers, Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka, at the top. The English spinner even dismissed the latter of the two batters and conceded just 16 runs off his four-over spell.

Fittingly, the cricketer was adjudged as 'Player of the Match' for his efforts in the low-scoring affair, as England made it to the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022.

After the match, Rashid admitted to receiving much assistance from the Sydney pitch, which he might not have gotten from any other Australian ground.

The wily spinner also praised Mark Wood, Ben Stokes and other bowlers for stemming the Sri Lankan run-flow in the death overs. 

Here's what Rashid stated

"It was quite nice to bowl a few dots and create a few chances but I thought it was a great team effort. That's T20 cricket again. It's obviously nice to bowl where there's a bit of assistance because in Australia you may not get that at certain grounds but you come here and you get that. I think all the bowlers bowled well, Stokes, Wood, everyone."

Rashid was having a torrid time in the tournament, going wicketless in all three games prior to today's one. So, he can get his inspiration from this match and utilise it to uplift his game in the all-important semifinal. 

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