Sri Lanka romped home with an eight-wicket win over Pakistan in the decider of the three-match ICC Women’s Championship (2025-29) ODI series.
The hosts chased the 188-run target in 37.2 overs here at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota on Tuesday afternoon.
Player of the series Harshitha Samarawickrama scored an unbeaten 71 off 92 balls, hitting 11 fours, to take her series tally of runs to 173, including a 100 not out in the second game.
Samarawickrama arrived at the crease when Fatima Sana broke the 46-run opening stand between Chamari Athapaththu and Vishmi Gunaratne, getting the latter caught behind for 12 off 17 in the seventh over of the chase.
For the third wicket, Samarawickrama and player of the match Athapaththu added 39 runs off 48 balls before the second breakthrough came via off-spinner Umm-e-Hani. Athapaththu had backed up her superb three for 27 spell with a quickfire 38-ball 52 hitting seven fours and two sixes.
From this juncture, Samarawickrama and Hasini Perera grounded out a 106-run unbeaten stand off 137 balls. They were constantly probed by left-arm spinner Nashra Sundhu, who went wicketless but only gave away 23 runs in her 10 overs, which also included a maiden.
While Samarawickrama brought up her ninth WODI half-century, Perera made sure to register her fourth fifty in the format as he finished exactly on 50 off 77 balls, having struck eight fours. Fatima Sana returned figures of 8-2-34-1, while Hani’s only wicket came for 43 runs in six overs, including a maiden.
Earlier, Pakistan were rocked by right-arm pacer Chethana Vimukthi’s three-wicket strike in just the second over of the game. She first got Sadaf Shamas caught behind after the opening batter had struck two fours in the opening over.
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Sidra Amin was also caught behind, while Ayesha Zafar was wrapped on the pads for a duck before Muneeba Ali evaded a hat-trick ball safely. Pakistan did try to salvage the innings with a few middle and lower-order partnerships, but it wasn’t to be as they were bowled for 187 in 40 overs, with Fatima Sana and Gull Feroza getting into forties.
Gull and Muneeba set out positively after the setbacks and kept the run flow coming at a decent rate as they gathered 68 off 82 balls. Athapaththu got Gull leg-before in the 16th over as she looked to sweep but missed the connection and departed for 40 off 35 balls with the help of five fours.
Muneeba also couldn’t convert her scrappy start of 34 off 71 balls, hitting three fours, as she fell to Inoka Ranaweera. Fatima Sana stuck around for 49 balls at the crease, scoring 41, and was the last batter dismissed. Pakistan skipper struck a six and two fours but became one of Kavisha Dilhari’s three quick strikes.
Pakistan felt themselves poised to go through all the 50 overs when Fatima and Najiha had joined forces and scored 30 runs off 22 balls in tandem, but Athapaththu again intervened in the 29th over to induce a leading edge off the wicketkeeper-batter as she returned for a 39-ball 30, hitting four fours. From this point, Pakistan lost 4-47 in 11.4 overs.
Vimukthi returned figures of 8-1-36-3, Athapaththu 6-0-27-3, and Dilhari 7-0-27-3, while Ranaweera gave 41 runs for her solitary wicket.
The two teams will now move to Dambulla to take part in a three-match WT20I series, with matches scheduled for 31 July, 2 and 4 August.
