"The host team curse is real" - Fans troll Australia for getting knocked out of the T20 World Cup in group stage

Hosts and defending champions Australia have been knocked out of the T20 World Cup as England beat Sri Lanka in Sydney on Saturday to take the second semifinal spot in Group 1.

Chasing 142 runs to win, England had to work hard but managed to get over the line with two balls to spare, thanks to a responsible 42* from Ben Stokes. Jos Buttler and his men ended up level on points with the hosts, but have qualified due to a better net run rate.

Fans on Twitter trolled Australia for not even qualifying for the knockout stages of the tournament on their home soil. Some also feel that the curse of no host team ever winning a T20 World Cup is real.

Here are some of the reactions:

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Australia have only themselves to blame for their poor net run rate

After losing by a massive margin of 89 runs against New Zealand in their opening game, the hosts needed to win their remaining games with good enough margins to ensure their passage into the semifinals.

Although their game against England was washed out, the Aussies beat Ireland, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka. But they failed to improve their net run-rate by a massive margin.

In the game against Ireland, the hosts had a great opportunity to win by a big margin, with the opposition reeling at 25-5 at one point. However, a stunning knock from Lorcan Tucker reduced the deficit to 41 runs.

Even in the match against Afghanistan yesterday, Rashid Khan's blitz denied the Aussies a huge win. This meant that they finished about 52 runs behind England in terms of net run rate.

Had Australia won the aforementioned games handsomely, they would have been heading to Sydney to play the semifinals and defend their crown. England's close win over Sri Lanka simply shut out whatever little chance they had.