Prolific Sri Lanka Women’s cricketer Chamari Atapattu has been picked up by Yorkshire to play in the Kia Super League in London.
In doing so Atapattu became the 1st Sri Lankan woman to sign a contract with a franchise based T20 League and will replace Australian Beth Mooney in the Yorkshire Diamonds squad for the League that is set to being in early August.
Speaking to ESPNcricinfo following the announcement she said, “I was on holiday with my family in Anuradhapura when I got a call, asking if I’m available. I said yes immediately. it was a pleasant surprise, I didn’t expect to play in the T20 league because most of the teams had already announced their squads. Playing in the Women’s Big Bash League was my original target, but this is a great opportunity. I wasn’t expecting it, but now I’m looking forward to learning a lot. This is a great step, not just for my career but also for women’s cricket in Sri Lanka.”
Atapattu has been the mainstay in Sri Lanka’s batting order for the past few years and made headlines during the recently concluded Women’s World Cup in England when she smashed defending champions Australia to all parts during an unbeaten knock of 178.
The Kia Super League is England’s version of the WBBL and features 6 franchises.
