Australia defeated Sri Lanka in their second game of the T20 World Cup 2022 by seven wickets to come back strongly after their defeat to trans-Tasmanian rivals New Zealand in their first game. Marcus Stoinis was the hero of the game as he scored a record breaking half-century to put the hosts and defending champions in the driver’s seat to win the game.
Marcus Stoinis smashed 59 runs from 18 balls as Australia chased down the target of 168 in 16.3 overs. In fact, Stoinis also smashed the fastest half-century by an Australian in the shortest format of the game, as he reached the landmark in just 17 balls. This was also the joint second-fastest fifty in the T20 World Cup.
Stoinis targetted the spin duo of Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana and hit them in all parts of the ground. The Australian all-rounder has credited playing in the Indian Premier League for his changed approach towards his batting against spin in T20s.
“Yeah, definitely the IPL has changed my cricket and helped me evolve, and it’s not only playing on the wickets, it’s having the coaches from all over the world, having players from different countries,” Stoinis said in an interaction post the win against Sri Lanka.
“I’ve played for quite a few years in the IPL and quite a few teams, so you come across a range of techniques and mentalities about how to play spin. Yeah, it has helped me improve for sure,” he added.
Marcus Stoinis also revealed that he was nervous before going on to bat vs Sri Lanka.
“I was actually quite nervous, to be honest, so yeah, the intention was just to go put an impact on the game and probably provide a bit of energy for the boys and try and get a spark going,” added the all rounder.
