West Indies secured a come-from-behind series win over Sri Lanka (2-1) as they registered a 6-wicket win in the third and final Women’s T20I played today (28th June) at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium.
West Indies skipper Hayley Matthews won the toss for the second consecutive time and decided to bowl first once again. Sri Lanka lost their in-form batter Vishmi Gunaratne for just 2 runs in the very first over of the innings. Skipper Chamari Athapaththu and No. 3 batter Harshitha Samarawickrama then rebuilt the innings, adding a 55-run partnership for the second wicket.
Athapaththu and Kavisha Dilhari also added a vital 34-run stand for the third wicket to strengthen their grip on the game. Nilakshi de Silva and Ama Kanchana displayed a late counterattack, scoring 12 off 9 and 19 off 15 respectively, to take Sri Lanka to a competitive total of 141/7.
- Athapaththu’s career-best figures help Sri Lanka go 1-0 up in T20I series
- Afy Fletcher 4-fer helps West Indies level T20I series
The opening pair Stafanie Taylor and Matthews provided a great start to the run-chase, stitching together 60 runs off 48 balls for the first wicket before the former was trapped in front by the off-spinner Dilhari for 33 runs. Matthews and Shemaine Campbelle continued to dominate Sri Lankan bowlers, adding another crucial stand worth 51 runs for the second wicket. The seamer Kawya Kavindi struck twice in two consecutive overs in the latter part of the innings, but the visitors got home convincingly with 6 wickets in hand.
Campbelle, who anchored the run-chase for West Indies with a match-winning knock, won the player of the match award while skipper Matthews won the player of the series award for scoring 108 runs and picking up a wicket in the series.
Brief Scores
Sri Lanka – 141/7 (20) Chamari Athapaththu 38, Harshitha Samarawickrama 28, Kavisha Dilhari 26, Afy Fletcher 2/25, Aaliyah Alleyne 2/25
West Indies – 142/4 (19.5) Hayley Matthews 49, Shemaine Campbelle 41*, Stafanie Taylor 33, Kawya Kavindi 2/27
Result – West Indies won by 6 wickets
 as they registered a 6-wicket win in the third and final Women’s T20I played today (28th June) at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium. ){kind=link}