Colombo: Sri Lanka will hope to make the most of home conditions and iron out their batting and fielding woes against a formidable Australia in their second match of the ICC Women’s World Cup here on Saturday.
The hosts bowled well in their opening game against India but paid the price for sloppy fielding and a string of soft dismissals. Despite nine batters reaching double digits, Sri Lanka failed to capitalise on the starts, eventually collapsing to 211 all out in 45.4 overs.
Skipper Chamari Athapaththu and her team will now face a stern challenge in the form of defending champions Australia, who opened their campaign with a dominant win over New Zealand.
Australia showcased their batting depth in the opener, recovering from 128 for 5 to post a mammoth 326 thanks to Ashleigh Gardner’s counter-attacking 115 and a valuable lower-order contribution from Kim Garth at No. 9.
With the likes of Beth Mooney, Phoebe Litchfield and captain Alyssa Healy at the top, the Aussies boast an enviable batting line-up that allows them to play with freedom and aggression.
Their bowling unit, too, fired in unison, with pacer Annabel Sutherland claiming three wickets in a single over. Leg-spinner Alana King and left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux can apply pressure during the middle overs, while experienced names like Megan Schutt, Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath and Darcie Brown remain constant threats.
For Sri Lanka, the challenge will be immense, and only a disciplined and consistent effort across all three departments will could them a chance against the seven-time champions.
Having missed out on qualification in the previous edition in 2022, Sri Lanka are eager to make their mark in this tournament, especially with their next four matches scheduled at home.
Athapaththu, the pillar of Sri Lanka’s batting, will once again shoulder the bulk of the responsibility. The left-hander famously smashed an unbeaten 178 off 143 balls against Australia in the 2017 World Cup — still regarded as one of the greatest innings in women’s cricket — and will hope to replicate that performance on Saturday.
The hosts have had a busy lead-up to the tournament, playing 31 matches, with young talents like Harshitha Samarawickrama, Vishmi Gunaratne and Kavisha Dilhari showing promise. They will form the backbone of the batting unit, and much will depend on their performance against Australia.
Against India, the collapse after the openers departed exposed the middle order, something the team management would be keen to address.
In the bowling department, Inoka Ranaweera and Udeshika Prabodhani impressed with the ball but lacked support from the other end.
“We are calm. I still have faith in my youngsters because they have won more games for us. If they (Dilhari, Samarawickrama and Gunaratne) can perform, we definitely have a better chance,” Athapaththu had said after the loss to India.
Sri Lanka may consider bringing in 20-year-old all-rounder Dewmi Vihanga, who impressed in the Tri-Nation Series with 11 wickets, including a match-winning 5/43 against South Africa.
