Smriti Mandhana struck a brilliant 80 off 48 balls, while Shafali Verma continued her excellent form, scoring 79 off 46 deliveries. This marked her third consecutive half-century in the series as India posted an impressive 221/2, their highest women’s T20I score, against Sri Lanka in the fourth T20I at the Greenfield International Stadium.
For the first time in the series, India was asked to bat first, and Smriti and Shafali laid a solid foundation with a blistering 162-run opening partnership. This is now the highest-ever partnership for the first wicket in T20Is for India.
Shafali’s innings, filled with 12 fours and a six, highlighted her rich vein of form. Smriti initially took her time but soon matched her partner stroke for stroke, accumulating 11 fours and three sixes. Although both fell in successive overs, Richa Ghosh provided a strong finish with an unbeaten 40 off just 16 balls. Her late blitz, along with Harmanpreet Kaur’s contribution of 16 not out off 10 balls, helped India add 63 runs in the last five overs.
Sri Lanka, eager to bowl first throughout the series, had only Malsha Shehani and Nimasha Madushani as wicket-takers. Now, they face the daunting task of chasing 222 runs. Much will depend on Chamari Athapaththu, who is playing her 150th T20I match, for a serious challenge against India’s imposing total.
India reached 61/0 at the end of the powerplay, with boundaries flowing freely from both Smriti and Shafali. The Sri Lankan bowlers struggled as captain Chamari cycled through her options without success.
During her innings, Smriti achieved a significant milestone, becoming just the fourth woman and the second Indian after Mithali Raj to reach 10,000 international runs. She brought up her fifty off 36 balls, while Shafali reached her half-century in just 30 balls.
After a brief slowdown during overs 7-9, where India could only muster 14 runs, Shafali and Smriti exploded, adding 74 runs in the following five overs. The acceleration was noteworthy: the first 50 runs came in 32 balls, the next in 33 balls, while the final 50 required just 21 deliveries.
Nimasha broke through in the 16th over by dismissing Shafali, who was caught and bowled, and Smriti followed soon after, falling to Malsha when her top edge was taken at backward square leg.
Richa then unleashed a devastating performance in the death overs, including a spectacular assault on Kavisha Dilhari in the 19th over, hitting three sixes and a four in four consecutive balls. She and Harmanpreet added an unbroken 50-run partnership in just 24 balls, pushing India past their previous best of 217/4 set against the West Indies in Navi Mumbai last year.
Brief scores:
India 221/2 in 20 overs (Smriti Mandhana 80, Shafali Verma 79, Richa Ghosh 40 not out; Malsha Shehani 1-32, Nimasha Madushani 1-40) against Sri Lanka.