A dominant India will look to seal the five-match series with another clinical performance when they face a struggling Sri Lanka in the third Women’s T20 International on Friday. Riding high on confidence, the hosts have been ruthless in the opening two matches and will aim to maintain their momentum as the series moves south.
India on a roll, Sri Lanka searches for answers
India have completely outplayed Sri Lanka with both bat and ball, registering emphatic eight-wicket and seven-wicket victories in Visakhapatnam. The wins underlined India’s growing supremacy over the island nation, marking their ninth victory in the last 11 T20Is against Sri Lanka, who last defeated India in July 2024 at Dambulla.
India’s batting depth has been a major strength, with different players stepping up at key moments. Newly appointed Delhi Capitals captain Jemimah Rodrigues starred in the series opener, while explosive opener Shafali Verma finished the chase with authority in the second match.
The bowling unit has been just as impressive, particularly the spinners, who have dictated terms by restricting Sri Lanka to 121 for 6 and 128 for 9 in the first two games. Youngsters N Shree Charani, Vaishnavi Sharma and Kranti Gaud have impressed with their control and discipline, sharing the workload effectively.
India’s depth was further highlighted in the second T20I when experienced all-rounder Deepti Sharma missed the game due to a mild fever. Sneh Rana stepped in seamlessly, returning economical figures of 1 for 11 in her four overs.
Fielding was the lone blemish in the opening match, where India dropped five catches, but they showed sharp improvement in the second encounter with three excellent run-outs. Led by Harmanpreet Kaur, India will look to raise their standards further as Thiruvananthapuram hosts the remaining three matches of the series.
Sri Lanka, meanwhile, will hope a change of venue can spark a turnaround after two heavy defeats. While the gulf in quality has been evident, their biggest concern has been repeated batting collapses at crucial stages.
Batting first in both matches, Sri Lanka failed to post competitive totals. In the opening game, Vishmi Gunaratne top-scored with a laboured 39 off 43 balls, while Hasini Perera and Harshitha Samarawickrama struggled to accelerate, leaving the innings without a late surge.
The second T20I followed a similar pattern. Sri Lanka were well placed before the dismissal of captain Chamari Athapaththu triggered a dramatic collapse. They lost six wickets for just 26 runs including three run-outs, to finish with another below-par total.
Their bowling attack has also lacked the penetration needed to challenge India’s deep and aggressive batting line-up.
“We had a good powerplay but lost a couple of wickets and then struggled in the middle overs,” Athapaththu said after the seconRohit Sharma's priceless reaction to vada pav call from the stands: Watch
d T20I. “Batters played too much with the horizontal bat. We need to score more than 150 batting first and hit more boundaries.”
Squads
India: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Harleen Deol, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Renuka Singh Thakur, Richa Ghosh (WK), G Kamalini (WK), N Shree Charani, Vaishnavi Sharma.
Sri Lanka: Chamari Athapaththu (C), Hasini Perera, Vishmi Gunaratne, Harshitha Samarawickrama, Nilakshika de Silva, Kavisha Dilhari, Imesha Dulani, Kaushini Nuthyangana, Malsha Shehani, Inoka Ranaweera, Shashini Gimhani, Nimesha Madushani, Kawya Kavindi, Rashmika Sewwandi, Malki Madara.
(By PTI Inputs)
Also Read: Rohit Sharma's priceless reaction to vada pav call from the stands: Watch
