In the opening game of the five-match women’s T20I series in Visakhapatnam, Jemimah Rodrigues maintained her excellent form from the Women’s ODI World Cup by hitting an undefeated half-century to enable India capitalize on a strong bowling performance to defeat Sri Lanka by eight wickets.
Jemimah, who scored a century to help India advance to the World Cup final, scored 69 not out off 44 balls on Sunday to help India race to 122/2 at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium and win the match with 32 balls remaining after the Indian bowlers put on an incredible display to limit Sri Lanka to a meek 121/6 in 20 overs.
Jemimah shared two half-century partnerships, scoring 54 for the second wicket stand with Smriti Mandhana (who scored a run-a-ball 25 after India lost Shafali Verma (9) early) and an incomplete 55-run partnership with captain Harmanpreet Kaur for the third wicket. Jemimah scored her half-century off 34 balls while striking ten boundaries.
Jemimah patiently developed her knock before unleashing some incredible strokes, running wonderfully, playing late cuts brilliantly, and occasionally encouraging Mandhana and Harmanpreet to put in more effort. After Verma clipped Kawya Kavindi to square leg, where Gimhani made a deft catch and dived forward, Mandhana and Rodrigues restored the Indian innings.
As he struck 25 and became the first Indian batter to surpass 4000 runs in women’s T20I cricket, Smriti was her typical left, cautious, and patient. Before Nilakshika Silva caught her at deep extra cover off Inoka Ranaweera, she struck four boundaries.
As they led India to a convincing victory, Rodrigues found a willing partner in captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored 15 not out to put India ahead 1-0 in the five-match series.
Earlier, both teams were hindered by an abundance of dew, but the bowlers made it possible for India to win easily.
In their first match since winning the Women’s ODI World Cup in Navi Mumbai, captain Harmanpreet Kaur chose to field after winning the toss. Despite terrible fielding, which included a few dropped catches, misfields, and a six palmed over by Smriti Mandhana, the Indian bowlers strangled the Sri Lankan hitters as the 50 overs World Champions found it difficult to adapt to the short format, which they were playing after a significant break.
After losing captain Chamari Athapaththu for 15 off 12 balls and scoring just 31/1 in the Power-play, the Sri Lankans were not much better and had trouble with the T20 format. Before Kranti Gaud could slip a ball through the space between the bat and pad and rattle the stumps for her first Women’s T20I wicket, the Sri Lankan captain hit three fours in the opening two overs.
Vaishavi Sharma, a rookie spinner, gave up just 16 runs in her four overs despite failing to take a wicket as the Indians tied the Sri Lankans. While N Shree Charani was somewhat pricey in her spell of 1-30 in four overs, Deepti Sharma gave up just 10 runs in three overs. In addition, she dropped two easy skiers.
Deepti Sharma (1-20), N. Shree Charani (1-30), and Kranti Gaud (1-23) each took a wicket for India.
Vishmi Gunaratne put up a valiant fight for Sri Lanka, scoring a sluggish 39 off 43 balls, including a four and a six, before being dismissed by Kranti Gaud after some excellent effort. She and Harshitha Samarawickrama established a 38-run partnership, but Sri Lanka’s batting attempt was once again thwarted after the latter was removed.
Harshitha Samarawickrama (21 off 23) and Hasini Perera (20 off 23) received starts but were unable to take advantage of them. Despite their inability to make any significant shots, they assisted the Islanders in reaching three digits.
Both Sri Lanka and India entered the game with different selections. In an attempt to establish the strongest lineup for the Women’s T20 World Cup, which will take place later in 2026, Sri Lanka selected a number of youthful players, while India showed faith in the tried and true by keeping most of the women who played in their victorious 50-over World Cup campaign.
Short scores:
India Women 122/2 in 14.4 overs (Jemimah Rodrigues 69 not out, Smriti Mandhana 25, Inoka Ranaweera 1-17) defeated Sri Lanka Women 121/6 in 20 overs (Vishmi Gunaratne 39, Harshitha Samarawickrama 21; Kranti Gaud 1-23, Deepti Sharma 1-20, N. Shree Charani 1-30).
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