Harleen Deol and Arundhati Reddy have been included in India’s playing eleven, as Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bowl first in the fourth T20I at the Greenfield International Stadium. India already holds an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.
This will mark the first time India bats in the series, previously opting to bowl and leveraging dew to chase down modest totals smoothly. Harleen replaces an unwell Jemimah Rodrigues, while Arundhati, who participated in the first two games in Visakhapatnam, steps in for a rested Kranti Gaud.
India captain Harmanpreet Kaur mentioned, “We were looking to bat today. This is an ideal series to give everyone a chance. Glad it is all coming to plan. I’m really happy everyone is coming up and giving their best. I am not putting any target in mind. Hopefully, we set a good total.”
Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu, playing in her 150th T20I, stated that Rashmika Sewwandi and Kawya Kavindi have entered their playing eleven in place of the rested Malki Madara and Inoka Ranaweera. “We batted first in the last three matches. Chasing will be a little bit easier with the dew coming in. We have to play our best cricket. 140 will be a good score to chase,” she said.
The match on Sunday will take place on pitch number seven, with square boundaries measuring 59m and 60m, while the straight boundary extends to 70m. Mithali Raj and Shebani Bhaskar noted that the pitch appears browner compared to the previous game, having some grass shaved off, offering favorable conditions for batting while also providing seamers assistance if they maintain a disciplined 6-8m length targeting the stumps.
Playing XIs:
India: Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Harleen Deol, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Amanjot Kaur, Arundhati Reddy, Vaishnavi Sharma, Renuka Singh Thakur, and Sree Charani.
Sri Lanka: Hasini Perera, Chamari Athapaththu (c), Harshitha Samarawickrama, Kavisha Dilhari, Imesha Dulani, Nilakshika Silva, Kaushani Nuthyangana (wk), Malsha Shehani, Rashmika Sewwandi, Kawya Kavindi, and Nimesha Madushani.