The Sri Lankan cricket team pulled off a thrilling three-wicket win over Pakistan to enter the final of the Women's Asia Cup 2024 on Friday, July 26. Skipper Chamari Athapaththu smashed another match-winning fifty as Sri Lanka chased down a 141-run target with a ball remaining in Dambulla and set a mouth-watering final against India.
Pakistan managed to post a challenging total of 140 while batting first with the opener Muneeba Ali top-scoring with 37 runs. Sri Lanka struggled for consistency throughout their innings but survived a late scare to register a memorable win at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium.
After being forced to bat first, the Pakistani openers Gull Feroza and Muneeba Ali produced a strong 61-run stand for the first wicket. Muneeba top-scored with 37 runs off 34 balls as Pakistani batters struggled for aggressive cricket against Sri Lanka's impressive spin attack.
The veteran pacer Udeshika Prabodhani gave Sri Lanka a breakthrough with two wickets in the tenth over but Pakistan managed to put a fighting total of 140/4 with captain Nida Dar and all-rounder Fatima Sana smashing quick runs in the closing stages.
Chasing a tough total, Sri Lanka lost opener Vishmi Gunaratne on a duck in the very first over of the innings. Athapaththu kept the game balanced with regular runs from one end but Pakistan enjoyed the momentum with timely wickets.
Athapaththu and wicketkeeper batter Anushka Sanjeewani added match-defining 42 runs for the fifth wicket but Pakistan made a sensational comeback with Omaima Sohail dismissing Athapaththu in the 17th over.
Sanjeewani remained unbeaten and scored the winning runs when Sri Lanka needed three runs to win off the last four balls of the game. Athapaththu claimed the Player of the Match award for her brilliant 63 runs off 48 balls knock.
Pakistan Women Playing XI: Gull Feroza, Muneeba Ali (wk), Sidra Ameen, Omaima Sohail, Nida Dar (c), Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana, Syeda Aroob Shah, Tuba Hassan, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal.
Sri Lanka Women Playing XI: Vishmi Gunaratne, Chamari Athapaththu (c), Harshitha Samarawickrama, Hasini Perera, Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), Kavisha Dilhari, Nilakshi de Silva, Inoshi Priyadharshani, Udeshika Prabodhani, Sugandika Kumari, Achini Kulasuriya.
