Indian Women's Team Secures T20 Series Victory Against Sri Lanka
Dominant Performance Leads to Series Win
The Indian women's cricket team triumphed over Sri Lanka by eight wickets, establishing an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match T20 series. This victory was marked by an impressive bowling display from returning players Renuka Singh Thakur and Deepti Sharma, alongside a powerful half-century from Shafali Verma, which helped the team chase down a target of 113 runs with ease. After winning the toss, the Indian side opted to field first, continuing their strong bowling performance against Sri Lanka. The duo of Renuka Singh Thakur and Deepti Sharma, both making a comeback to the playing eleven, made significant contributions to the team's success.
Bowling Stars Shine
Renuka, returning after a long absence, wreaked havoc with the new ball, dismantling the Sri Lankan top order and finishing with impressive figures of 4/21. Meanwhile, Deepti Sharma, who missed the previous match due to illness, maintained consistent pressure and achieved figures of 3/18, making history by tying with Australia's Megan Schutt for the most wickets in women's T20 internationals, both now holding 151 wickets.
Sri Lanka Struggles with Batting
After losing early wickets, Sri Lanka struggled to find their rhythm, ending up at 32/3 within six overs. Captain Chamari Athapaththu and Hasini Perera showed some resistance initially, but the middle order failed to convert a promising start into a competitive score. The Sri Lankan team remained under pressure throughout the innings, with wicketkeeper-batter Kaushini Nuthyangana's unbeaten 19 helping them surpass the 100-run mark. Hasini Perera (25 runs off 18 balls), Imesha Dulani (27 runs off 32 balls), and Kavisha Dilhari (20 runs off 13 balls) were the only players to score over 20 runs, as Sri Lanka managed just 112/7 in their 20 overs.
Shafali Verma's Explosive Batting
Chasing the target, the Indian innings was dominated by Shafali Verma's aggressive batting. She reached her 13th T20 international half-century in just 24 balls and ultimately scored 79 runs off 42 deliveries. Despite Smriti Mandhana (1) and Jemimah Rodrigues (9) falling cheaply to Kavisha Dilhari, captain Harmanpreet Kaur (21*) partnered with Shafali to secure the win with 6.4 overs to spare.