By Leonard Ratnayake
Sri Lanka kept their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final hopes alive after surviving a spirited Scotland challenge in a dramatic three-wicket victory with one ball remaining at Old Trafford.
Needing victory to stay in contention, Sri Lanka got over the line but failed to secure the convincing margin they required. They now sit level with the West Indies on six points in Group 2, although the Caribbean side remain second on net run rate. Sri Lanka must now hope England heavily defeat New Zealand and Ireland do the same to the West Indies if they are to reach the semi-finals.
Captain Chamari Athapaththu gave Sri Lanka a flying start, smashing 33 from just 16 balls during the powerplay. However, after her dismissal, Scotland fought back superbly to expose the middle order and take the game to the final over.
Silva and Kumari held their nerve in the closing stages to complete the highest successful run chase in Women’s T20 World Cup history and seal Sri Lanka’s third victory of the tournament.
Player of the Match Silva said: “I’m proud of this performance and proud of the team. Against the West Indies I got out early, but today I wanted to finish the game. I trust my skill in the middle.”
Athapaththu praised Scotland’s display but admitted Sri Lanka had struggled under pressure.
“As a team we’re playing good cricket, but we didn’t handle the pressure in the middle overs,” she said. “The highest successful run chase in a T20 World Cup is a positive, but we still need to improve with both bat and ball. Making the semi-finals was our target, but unfortunately we lost to the West Indies.”
Scotland captain Kathryn Bryce was left reflecting on another agonising defeat.
“I thought if we got a couple of dot balls, you never know,” she said. “It’s heartbreaking because in three matches we’ve been in positions where we could have won, but I’m proud of the team and the way we fought back after Athapaththu’s start.”
Sri Lanka remain alive in the tournament, but only just. Their hopes of reaching the last four now rest on favourable results in the final Group 2 fixtures.
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