Rahmat Shah (62), skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi (58 not out) and Azmatullah Omarzai (73 not out) slammed well-timed half-centuries to complement the superb bowling effort of pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi (4-34) as Afghanistan defeated Sri Lanka by seven wickets in their World Cup match here on Monday.

Chasing 242 for victory, Afghanistan went past the target in 45.2 overs for the loss of three wickets. A 111-run partnership between Shahidi (58 not out) and Azmatullah (73 not out) for the unbroken fourth wicket stand formed the cornerstone of the big win, their third in this tournament. The result also helped them climb to fifth place on the table with six points and with three more matches remaining the Afghans will dream of making a run for the semifinals. Sri Lanka remained on sixth spot with four points from six matches.