Wanindu Hasaranga led an inspired bowling effort before Dhananjaya de Silva hit a fine fifty as Sri Lanka kept their semi-final hopes alive with a six-wicket win over Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup here on Tuesday.

Man of the Match Hasaranga (3/13) and pacer Lahiru Kumara (2/30) shared five wickets among themselves to restrict Afghanistan to 144/8.

Dhananjaya took control of the Sri Lankan innings with an unbeaten 66 off 42 balls as the reigning Asia Cup champions crossed the line with nine balls to spare.

With the win, Sri Lanka are now in fourth spot in the Group 1 standings. Afghanistan are out of the reckoning for the semis.

Defending a modest total, Sri Lanka started off well. Kusal Mendis (25) hit back-toback boundaries as Sri Lanka dallied to 28/1 in the Powerplay before departing in Rashid Khan’s first over.

Dhananjaya then stitched crucial partnerships with Charith Asalanka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa to take Sri Lanka to victory.

Brief scores: Afghanistan 144/8 in 20 overs (R. Gurbaz 28; W. Hasaranga 3/13, L. Kumara 2/30). Sri Lanka 148/4 in 18.3 ovs (D. de Silva 66n.o. K. Mendis 25; M. Rahman 2/24, R. Khan 2/31). Sri Lanka won by six wickets.