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Top Stories Aussies thrash sorry Sri Lanka Brett Lee and Australia skittled Sri Lanka for just 101 in Cape Town en route to crushing their opponents by 10 wickets and booking a World Twenty20 semi-final berth on Thursday. The Aussies brushed aside two earlier defeats to bowl out the Sri Lankans for just 101 on a Cape Town wicket not nearly as bad as it was made to look. Stuart Clark excelled with 4-20 after wickets had fallen in the first three overs of an effective quarter-final. No bowling attack could realistically defend such a low total, and the Aussies won with all wickets standing. Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist never looked in a hurry but still raced to the target with barely a false shot played. Hayden finished the match with a huge six over long-on off the occasional bowling of Jehan Mubarak to end with 56 off 37 balls. Gilchrist, never out of second gear, finished on 31 off 25, with the victory achieved in only the 11th over. After Gilchrist had won an important toss - batting at 10am in Cape Town in springtime is not a friendly prospect - the Aussie bowlers were on the money throughout. Brett Lee (2-27) did win a fortunate lbw decision to get the ball rolling with the wicket of Sanath Jayasuriya. The rest of the Sri Lankan batsmen then found scoring opportunities severely limited with the swing on offer and the ball not quite coming onto the bat. They generally got out to rash shots, with three catches offered to third man and two to backward point - including a brilliant one-handed take by Michael Clarke. The highest individual scorer was Mubarak, with 28. Sri Lanka would have been 11-4 in the fourth over if Brad Hodge had caught Kumar Sangakkara on six, the batsman finally out for 22. Clark struck consistently, however, the only downside for Australia being another injury for Shane Watson. The Queensland all-rounder, in for Ricky Ponting (hamstring), was making his first appearance of the tournament. But he has been dogged by injuries in his international career. And after Lasith Malinga hoicked the second ball of his final over beyond the rope for Sri Lanka's only six, Watson limped out of the fray. The over, the 19th of the innings, was completed by Andrew Symonds, who promptly had Chaminda Vaas (21) caught at deep mid-wicket. And the last wicket fell in the final over - Dilhara Fernando becoming a second victim for Nathan Bracken when he gave the bowler a simple return catch. source - bbc.co.uk

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