<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><b>Opener Kusal Mendis slammed a 44-ball 79 as Asian champions Sri Lanka beat the Netherlands by 16 runs to sweep into the Super 12 stage of the Twenty20 World Cup on Thursday.</b></span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The world's eighth-ranked team plundered 162-6, blasting 102 of them off the final 10 overs to set up a big target which the Dutch were unable to reach, finishing on 146-9.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In which Super 12 group they play will be determined after the later game in Geelong between Namibia and United Arab Emirates.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A win for the African side will knock out the Dutch and send them through, as they already have a superior net run rate. If the UAE upset Namibia, the Dutch will progress.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">It is the third successive time Sri Lanka have reached the Super 12 and they will be hoping to repeat their heroics from 2014, when Dinesh Chandimal skippered them to the title.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">But it was a rocky road to get there, stunned by Namibia in the tournament's opening game before crushing UAE and now the Netherlands.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Sri Lanka started slowly with Pathum Nissanka and Mendis plodding to just 22 off the first five overs.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Nissanka was dropped in the fifth over, and came undone on 14 when hostile pace bowler Paul Van Meekeren returned to the attack and sent down a yorker.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Dhananjaya de Silva followed him back to pavilion the next ball, out lbw, as Sri Lanka lived dangerously with countless chances falling just short of the fielders.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Charith Asalanka and Mendis knuckled down in a 60-run stand to step up the run rate before Asalanka was caught behind off all-rounder Bas de Leede for 31.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mendis brought up his ninth T20 half-century with a six then smacked successive sixes in the penultimate over before he was out going for another boundary, almost carrying his bat.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Despite missing injured pace spearheads Dushmantha Chameera and Pramod Madushan, a Sri Lankan attack with replacements Lahiru Kumara and Binura Fernando kept the Dutch at bay in the opening overs.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Opener Vikramjit Singh was out for seven, caught by Dusan Shanaka off Maheesh Theekshana then Kumara got the big wicket of rising star De Leede for 14.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The experienced Colin Ackermann went for a golden duck to the spin of Hasaranga de Silva as they reached 63-3 at halfway.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Opener Max O'Dowd (71 not out) gamely hung on but when captain Scott Edwards was bowled by Fernando after a quick-fire 21 they slumped from 100-4 to 109-8 and the game was all-but over. AFP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>