By Srian Obeyesekere
Sri Lanka’s Women:s batters smashed through rendering India’s threatening bowlingr attack to nothingness in a show of strength right up to the lower order to meeting a daunting 276 challenge in a dramatic 3-wicket avenging of the lung opener loss in a game swinging 28 ball fastest fifty record bludgeoning by Nilakshi Silva to ultimate climaxing 8th wicket victory clanging by a game Anushka Sanjeewani 23 off 28 and Sugandika Kumari run a ball 20 to bridging the final 38 off 7 overs after Player of the Match Silva fell in the 43rd over to bringing the Tri Series to a head in drawing even with the Indians by back to back triumphs following an equally compelling dousing of South Africa in yesterday’s fourth game at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.
In a contest that Sri Lanka might have made short shrift of India had skipper Chamari Athapaththu held a straightforward catch off Jemima Rodrigues (37) before she had reached double figures with the score 3 down just past 100 that would have taken out the frontline, Silva came all guns blazing to the show 56 off 33 smashing 3 to the stands and 5 across in a take of the bull by the horns fronting the bad decision by the English umpire that put the Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu out of action ruled caught behind swishing outside the off stump with replays clearly indicting the wrong call by the umpire. It was a turning point knock with Sri Lanka on 152 for 4 after 32.1 overs by that bad call blow to Sri Lanka’s chase.
She broke the previous fastest fifty record jointly held by Athapaththu and Eshani Lokusuriyage.
In a typical high scoring showdown of India, put in to bat, it totaling 275 for 9 off 50 overs on a top score of 58 by wicket keeper batter Richa Gosh off 48 balls in a fourth wicket 45 capitalisation with Rodrigues from that early let off to the latter further widening it to 181 in what was cornerstone to that big total when she was ultimately taken out by the Lankan skipper, the herculean bravado of the Lankan counter attack in that run chase was the top to bottom silken gung ho of the host batters – Hasini Perera 22 off 27 in 30 first wicket set up together with Vishmi Gunaratne, a game 33 off 58, just the solitary boundary signifying sheer commitment to the cause in further carrying Sri Lanka past 100 in a second wicket thrust with that center piece playmaker to the chase Hatdhitha Samarawickrama a solid 53 off 61 with 5 boundaries, the left hander’s most striking attribute being the uncanny casual sauntering approach though undoing that classic by the one bad shot lollypop catch off a full toss to cover off part time bowler Rawal when well set.
Chief Scores:
Sri Lanka 278 for 7 (Silva 56, Samarawickrama 53, Rana 3-45) beat India 275 for 9 (Ghosh 58, Rodrigues 37, Athapaththu 3-43, Sugandika 3-44) by three wickets
This post is an official press release by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
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