Shafali’s 79*, Renuka-Deepti’s clinical bowling hand India Women 8-wicket win over Sri Lanka in 3rd T20I

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM(Kerala): India Women secured an eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka Women to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match T20I series. The win was defined by a ruthless bowling performance led by the returning Renuka Singh Thakur and Deepti Sharma, and an explosive half-century from Shafali Verma that made light work of the 113-run target.

India Women continued their impressive run with the bowl against Sri Lanka after winning the toss and opting to field first. The headlines were stolen by the returning duo of Renuka Singh Thakur and Deepti Sharma, both of whom made excellent contributions in their return to the XI.

Renuka, back in the side after a lengthy absence, was devastating with the new ball as she ripped through the Sri Lankan top order, finishing with impressive figures of 4/21. At the other end, Deepti Sharma, who returned after missing the previous match due to illness, applied relentless pressure and claimed 3/18, while also creating history by becoming the joint-highest wicket-taker in women’s T20Is, equalling Australia’s Megan Schutt with 151 wickets.

Sri Lanka struggled to build momentum after losing early wickets and slipping to 32/3 at the six-over mark. Captain Chamari Athapaththu and Hasini Perera showed some early resistance, but the middle order once again failed to turn starts into a competitive total.

The visitors remained under pressure throughout the innings before wicketkeeper-batter Kaushini Nuthyangana’s late, unbeaten 19 helped them cross the 100-run mark. Hasini Perera (25 off 18), Imesha Dulani (27 off 32) and Kavisha Dilhari (20 off 13) were the only Sri Lankan batters to score more than 20 runs as Sri Lanka could only manage 112/7 in 20 overs.

India’s chase was a one-sided affair fueled by Shafali Verma’s aggressive batting. She reached her 13th T20I half-century in just 24 balls, eventually finishing with 79 off 42 balls. Though Smriti Mandhana (1) and Jemimah Rodrigues (9) fell cheaply to Kavisha Dilhari, Captain Harmanpreet Kaur (21*) joined Shafali to guide the team home with 6.4 overs to spare. (ANI)