In a rain-affected contest reduced to 39 overs, India Women delivered a dominant performance to crush Sri Lanka Women by nine wickets with 56 balls to spare in the ongoing tri-nation series.
Opting to bowl first on a muggy, humid day, an injury-hit Indian side made early inroads. With Sneh Rana making her return to the national side alongside debutants and WPL sensations Kashvee Gautam and Nallapureddy Charni, India did not allow the Sri Lankan batters any opportunity to settle. Although opener Hasini Perera provided some resistance, captain and ace batter Chamari Athapaththu fell early to Arundhati Reddy.
On a surface that offered early movement and remained on the slower side, India’s bowlers were seldom placed under sustained pressure. After the pacer’s early breakthrough, India’s spin trio — Deepti Sharma, Rana, and Charni — tightened the noose on Sri Lanka’s scoring.
The spinners did the bulk of the damage, picking up eight wickets between them, with each contributing significantly. In the field, India scarcely gave away free runs, buoyed by a couple of run-outs. The only blemish was a few missed chances behind the stumps by Richa Ghosh.
After restricting Sri Lanka to a modest 147, Indian openers Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal provided a strong start, virtually taking the game away from the hosts. Mandhana, the ODI Player of the Year, was the aggressor during the controlled chase. In their 53-run opening stand, Mandhana scored 43 before being caught and bowled by left-arm orthodox spinner Inoka Ranaweera. From there, Rawal and Harleen Deol took charge, carefully steering India to the target without further loss.
Rawal, who has been in excellent form since her 154 against Ireland earlier this year, played a composed innings of 50 off 62 balls, maintaining a control percentage of 92%. At the other end, Deol finished unbeaten on 48 off 71 balls.
India will next play South Africa on Tuesday at the same venue before their second round of fixtures begins on Sunday.