Chamari Athapaththu responded to Sri Lanka’s disappointing defeat against the West Indies in spectacular fashion, smashing an unbeaten 106 to lead her side to a commanding nine-wicket victory over Ireland Women and keep their Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final hopes alive.
After describing herself as a failed captain following the loss to the West Indies, Athapaththu produced a captain’s innings when Sri Lanka needed it most, guiding her side to 134 for 1 in just 15.3 overs in pursuit of Ireland’s 130 for 5.
Sri Lanka’s bowlers set up the win with a disciplined display after electing to field. Ireland stumbled early before captain Gaby Lewis steadied the innings with a fighting half-century, helping her side recover to a competitive total.
“The important thing was to build a partnership,” Lewis said afterwards. “Hope the girls will learn and come back stronger.” She also praised her opposite number, calling Athapaththu “a world-class player” after her match-winning knock.
The chase, however, belonged entirely to the Sri Lankan captain. Athapaththu attacked from the outset, dominating the scoring and leaving Ireland without answers as she brought up a superb century from just 58 balls.
Her contribution was remarkable, accounting for 106 of Sri Lanka’s 134 runs , an extraordinary 79.1 percent of the team’s total.
Named Player of the Match, Athapaththu admitted she had been determined to make amends for her early dismissal against West Indies.
“Unfortunately, I got out early in the last game and I was disappointed about that, but we won today and that’s what matters to me as a player and as a captain,” she said. “We needed to improve our net run rate, so I just played my natural game. I always attack.”
The Sri Lankan skipper also praised her bowling unit, singling out young spinner Mithali for special mention.
“Young Mithali is amazing and the other bowlers also bowled well. I am really happy with the bowling unit,” she said.
Athapaththu’s affection for Bristol was evident after another memorable innings at the venue.
“I love Bristol. Whenever I come here, I score runs,” she said with a smile. Asked how many T20I centuries she now had, she laughed and replied: “No, I am not counting.”
The victory moves Sri Lanka onto four points with one group match remaining against Scotland. Despite the emphatic win, their net run rate remains at -0.973, meaning qualification is still not entirely in their hands.
“We have one more game left and I want us to play our best game against Scotland,” Athapaththu said. “We cannot control other results. We are in a bit of trouble now, but we keep smiling and play our best cricket.”
Ireland remain winless in the tournament, while Sri Lanka’s World Cup dream survives thanks to a captain who answered adversity with one of the finest innings of the competition.
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