Visakhapatnam, Dec 22: Jemimah Rodrigues continued her brilliant form following the Women’s ODI World Cup, smashing an unbeaten 69 off 44 balls to help India Women defeat Sri Lanka Women by eight wickets in the first match of the five-match T20I series at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium.
After Indian bowlers restricted Sri Lanka to a modest 121/6 in 20 overs, Rodrigues anchored the chase, scoring her half-century off 34 balls with 10 boundaries. She forged two key partnerships — 54 runs with Smriti Mandhana and an unbeaten 55-run stand with captain Harmanpreet Kaur, guiding India to 122/2 in 14.4 overs and a comprehensive victory with 32 balls to spare.
Mandhana contributed 25 runs in a steady display and became the first Indian woman to surpass 4,000 runs in T20Is. Harmanpreet remained unbeaten on 15 runs, helping Rodrigues steer India to a convincing win.
The Indian bowling attack set the platform for the win, despite challenging conditions with heavy dew. Kranti Gaud, Deepti Sharma, and N. Shree Charani claimed a wicket each, while debutant Vaishavi Sharma impressed with economical bowling, conceding only 16 runs in four overs.
For Sri Lanka, Vishmi Gunaratne top-scored with 39 off 43 balls, but wickets at regular intervals, including her run out by Kranti Gaud, derailed the innings. Contributions from Hasini Perera (20) and Harshitha Samarawickrama (21) helped the Islanders reach three figures, but they struggled to find momentum.
Both teams fielded contrasting strategies, with India relying on their World Cup-winning squad, while Sri Lanka introduced several youngsters ahead of the 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup.
Brief Scores:
Sri Lanka Women: 121/6 in 20 overs (Vishmi Gunaratne 39, Harshitha Samarawickrama 21; Kranti Gaud 1-23, Deepti Sharma 1-20, N. Shree Charani 1-30)
India Women: 122/2 in 14.4 overs (Jemimah Rodrigues 69*, Smriti Mandhana 25; Inoka Ranaweera 1-17) India won by 8 wickets