Australia 193 for 4 beat Pakistan 172 for 8 by 21 runs
Australia have arrived as a force at the World Twenty20, just in time to wave goodbye to Pakistan, as they completed a 21-run win in Mohali. A storming display with the bat was followed by an improved showing with the ball, setting up what will be effectively an elimination match against India in the final match of the Super 10s on Sunday.
The captain Steven Smith chose Mohali as the venue where he found his rhythm, in turn modulated then audacious in an innings that controlled the tempo of a strong total. He was helped in large part by Shane Watson, who batted with the air of a man freed of tension by his retirement announcement on match eve. Together, their stand left Pakistan with a total too steep despite friendly batting conditions.
In the field, Adam Zampa again bowled with considerable intelligence and character for Australia, winning a duel with Shahid Afridi that Pakistan's captain could not afford to lose if he wished to stay in contention for the semi-finals. James Faulkner's over-the-wrist slower balls then cut a swathe through the latter part of the innings as the run rate climbed, leaving him in possession of Australia's best T20 bowling figures.
Pakistan's chase began firmly, as Sharjeel Khan, Khalid Latif and Umar Akmal all played with considerable flair. Nathan Coulter-Nile was subjected to some particularly harsh treatment, and at 85 for 2 in the 11th over the match was overmuch open to Afridi's men.
However, Zampa showed his nerve by finding a way past Akmal, and two overs later followed up by coaxing Afridi down the wicket. The stumping was completed without fuss by Peter Nevill, who has provided a steadying presence behind the stumps in this tournament even though he is not in the batsman-wicketkeeper mode that has become dominant in the 21st century.
From there the required rate climbed with increasing steepness, too much even for Shoaib Malik, who hit out firmly at the end. Australia's lack of a second spin bowler to support Zampa has been a point of some contention, but Faulkner's past as a left-arm wrist spinner has helped him assemble a strong array of change-ups that flummoxed the lower order. Josh Hazlewood and Glenn Maxwell also contributed tidy overs to the cause.
Smith had named another reshuffled Australian side with the soon to retire Watson dropping down the order to make room for the return of Aaron Finch at the expense of Mitchell Marsh, while Hazlewood was included ahead of John Hastings. Pakistan recalled the fit-again Wahab Riaz in place of Mohammad Irfan, who was described as resting by his captain Afridi.
On an excellent pitch offering some sort of help for batsmen and bowlers alike, Mohammad Amir fought a fascinating early duel with Usman Khawaja. Amir's pace and movement unsettled Khawaja in ways seldom seen over the past few months, and while the opener scored swiftly, it was without his customary assurance. When Wahab replaced Mohammad Sami at the other end, Khawaja remained fretful, and was yorked giving himself room - Amir had undoubtedly played a part.
Finch and David Warner did not linger, but Maxwell produced one of the strokes of the tournament with a pure off-driven six that left many wondering why he seems compelled to resort to the outlandish so often. Even so, there was still much work to do when Smith was joined by Watson, on a ground where in 2010 he made one of his two Test hundreds.
Smith's concentration had been fierce, with Warner and Maxwell's blows allowing him to hustle into an innings without trying anything too lateral. Watson's arrival had Smith taking his tempo up several notches, as they charted a course to a total near 200. Initially, Watson looked a little unused to the middle order, but after scrambling to 10 from 10 balls, he detonated.
Watson's sheer power was shown when he muscled Amir over long-on and underlined once more with a glorious six inside out over cover from Sami. Meanwhile Wahab's efforts to stop Smith from levering the ball through the leg side reached a memorable extreme when Australia's captain took guard well outside off stump. Wahab followed him wider, yet Smith was still able to flip a boundary over midwicket that will make all the tournament highlight reels.
In all, Watson and Smith added 74 in 38 balls. Amir and Sami conceded 92 between them without taking a wicket, figures that appeared unlikely when Khawaja had been groping unsuccessfully at the left-armer's new-ball swing. Australia grew in strength from there, much as they have in this tournament. The meeting with India looms large.
West Indies 123 for 7 beat South Africa 122 for 8 by three wickets
West Indies secured their spot in the World T20 2016 semi-finals with a third successive win but made hard work of chasing a small target of 123. With just a shave over a run-a-ball needed, West Indies were routinely dragged back, to a point where they needed 20 off the last two overs. However, a solid start from Johnson Charles, a composed innings from Marlon Samuels and a six from Carlos Brathwaite in the final over saw them sneak over the line.
South Africa's bowling attack did their best to make up for the blunders of their batsmen, who had slumped to 47 for 5 in the ninth over before eking over 120. Aaron Phangiso, playing in his first international match in five months and the first since remodeling his action last month, and David Wiese both conceded under six runs to the over, but it was Imran Tahir who kept South Africa in the match. The legspinner gave away only 13 runs in four overs and took two wickets off successive deliveries in the 17th over. In the end, it was not enough and South Africa could exit the tournament before playing their final group match. If England beat Sri Lanka on Saturday, South Africa's campaign will be over.
Unusually for the format, this was a battle of the ball. Batsmen from both sides failed to adjust to the sluggish pace of the pitch but South Africa's line-up were also caught unawares by a surprise addition to West Indies' attack. Chris Gayle proved their nemesis in an unexpected way by removing two of South Africa's top six, and he played his part in pegging them back in the Powerplay, a situation from which they never really recovered.
The match-day pitch was not the same as the one used for the qualifying phase or the game between India and New Zealand, so there was some uncertainty as to what a good score would be. That's why Darren Sammy chose to chase and why South Africa were anxious for every run.
Their desperation showed as early as the third ball when Hashim Amla was run out by Andre Russell, who carried that success to his bowling by dismissing Faf du Plessis, caught by Sulieman Benn at mid-off. Russell also took a catch at point when Rilee Rossouw, promoted to No.4 in his first appearance in the tournament, skied the ball.
South Africa held AB de Villiers back after their initial setbacks and he came in at No.5. He saw the side through to the end of their most meagre Powerplay so far - 39 for 3 compared to scores over 60 in the previous two matches - but could not do too much more.
When Dwayne Bravo, the sixth bowler used by Sammy in the first eight overs, was brought on, de Villiers' innings ended. Sammy sensed South Africa were shaken and brought Gayle back on, with success. He broke through David Miller's defences to leave South Africa at 47 for 5.
That score could have become 59 for 6 had Denesh Ramdin completed a stumping off Benn, who foxed Wiese with a flighted delivery. Wiese had come out of his crease and missed, but Ramdin also missed and the reprieve proved a gift for South Africa.
The Quinton de Kock-Wiese partnership, worth 50 runs for the sixth wicket, was the most profitable of their innings. But the going was tough for the pair. They only found the boundary three times in the 44 balls they were together but, by the time de Kock was bowled around his legs by Russell, they had given South Africa something to work with.
Chris Morris took South Africa over 100 but they could only find eight runs off the last two overs and it did not seem enough until they received some reassurance that it could be.
Kagiso Rabada found late swing with his fifth delivery and beat Gayle to remind West Indies it was not going to be easy. West Indies, however, showed they were up to shifting gears.
They waited until the last ball of the third over for their first boundary, when Andre Fletcher lofted Rabada over midwicket for six. Johnson Charles found the going slightly easier off Chris Morris, whose second over cost 11 runs. In the absence of Dale Steyn and Kyle Abbott, Faf du Plessis recognised the need to try something and turned to spin in the Powerplay.
Tahir was brought on to bowl the fifth over and he proved difficult to get away. Wiese was tasked with doing the same at the other end. Collectively, South Africa frustrated West Indies into trying to steal a single where there wasn't one. Fletcher was halfway to the striker's end in the sixth over when Charles sent him back but, even if he had not slipped, Rossouw's direct hit was always going to beat him.
With the fielding restrictions lifted, South Africa brought on their second specialist spinner, Phangiso. Although he has changed his action, his approach appeared the same and he was typically strangling. Phangiso conceded just one run off his first over and six singles off his second. His third over was headed for a similarly economical result but Charles had had enough. He heaved Phangiso over long-on for six and the pressure dissipated.
Charles' aggression did not serve him well a second time. When he swiped at Wiese three balls later, he only managed to sky the ball to du Plessis at cover and the tension was back.
Du Plessis wanted more wickets and brought Rabada back. He started with a leg-side half-volley that Bravo flicked for four. That was followed up by two similar deliveries to Samuels, who carved one over point and then played an upper-cut to third man. West Indies scored 14 off that over to bring the required run rate to under six.
South Africa switched to squeeze mode again. Phangiso's final over cost only three and included Bravo's wicket. West Indies needed 36 off six overs but Samuels was still there. With Andre Russell, he took eight off the next over before du Plessis played his strongest hand.
Tahir's final over - the 17th of the innings - could have seen Samuels dismissed off the first ball but the bowler could not hold on to the return catch. Three balls later, Russell holed out and, the next ball, Sammy was bowled off a googly. Advantage South Africa. The next over - Wiese's final - cost just three. Advantage South Africa. Even though Samuels was still there with West Indies needing 20 off the last two overs.
He hit the first ball of Morris' final over through third man for four and, off the fourth ball, found the same area with the same result. Then he skied the ball. Still advantage South Africa.
Rabada was asked to defend nine off the final over and started with a slower ball. Brathwaite hit the second ball for a six to break the tension, and West Indies completed the win with two balls to spare.
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