A commanding opening stand between Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana, followed by an excellent overall bowling effort, gave India their eighth Asia Cup title, fourth in T20 format, as they beat previous champions Sri Lanka by 72 runs in Dubai.

Shafali and Mandhana put up 129 for the first wicket, the highest partnership for any wicket in the Women’s T20 Asia Cup, to power India to 183 for 5. Sri Lanka’s chase never got going, despite India dropping as many as five catches, as the spin unit led by Deepti Sharmaand N Shree Charani kept them under control throughout. Chamari Athapaththu top-scored with 36, but Sri Lanka were eventually bowled out for 111. India now lead Sri Lanka 6-1 in Asia Cup final meetings.

Shafali set the tone after captain Harmanpreet Kaur opted to bat after winning the toss. When Sri Lanka introduced spin in the second over, both openers immediately attacked, picking up two boundaries. But Shafali combined power with placement in the third over, first using the pace on a short ball from outside off to guide it past short third, before clipping a length delivery through midwicket to make it back-to-back fours.

Athapaththu brought herself on in the fifth over but that brought little respite. Shafali got underneath a tossed-up delivery and launched it straight back over the bowler’s head before sending another ball in the slot over long-on. India raced to 57 without loss at the end of the powerplay.

The boundary-hitting continued after the powerplay too, with Shafali finding the ropes regularly on her way to a 24-ball fifty, the fastest half-century in Women’s T20 Asia Cup history. Mandhana, who had initially scored at around a run a ball, then joined in on the fun as she lofted a flighted delivery from Chamudi Praboda over long-on before bringing up her own half-century, off 36 balls, with a cut through the offside. India reached 98 without loss at the end of ten overs.

With India looking well on track for a 200-plus total, Sri Lanka finally made inroads in the 13th over when Praboda broke through, having Shafali mistime a shot to cover. India suffered another setback in the following over when Mandhana was run out for the third time in the tournament. Harmanpreet, coming in at No. 3, struck Athapaththu’s delivery straight to point and immediately set off for a single, but she hesitated midway before continuing, leaving Mandhana stranded as the throw came in. The mix-up ended Mandhana’s innings on 59, with Sri Lanka sending back both well-set openers in a space of six balls.

Sri Lanka could have had Richa Ghosh soon after but Kavisha Dilhari could not hold on to a difficult running catch. Ghosh had mistimed a slog sweep towards deep backward square leg, with Dilhari racing in and diving forward, only for the ball to slip from her hands as she hit the ground. Ghosh could not make the most of the reprieve as she scored 15 off 13 before picking out cover.

Sri Lanka did a better job at the death, restricting India and picking up the wickets of Harmanpreet and Deepti in successive deliveries in the 19th over. That brought G Kamalini, playing her first match in this Asia Cup and just her second T20I, to the crease and she managed a four and a six off the last two balls to take India to 183 for 5.

A chase of 184 was never going to be easy, but Imesha Dulani started the proceedings positively, shuffling across to a full delivery from Kranti Gaud and paddling it past short fine leg for four. But a similar attempt brought an end to her innings in the fourth ball of the over, with Dulani attempting a scoop only to miss the ball completely and watch it crash into the top of leg stump.

Earlier, Sri Lanka had suffered a setback when Vishmi Gunaratne appeared to roll her ankle while returning the ball and was carried off the field on a stretcher. She, however, came out to bat at No. 3, attempting to rebuild alongside Athapaththu. But fast bowlers Gaud and Nandani Sharma left the duo frustrated, with Athapaththu enduring a testing over from Gaud, getting off the mark only on the eighth delivery she faced.

She then showed off some of her big hitting, taking on Shafali for a six and a four, but despite the boundaries, she was only going at a run-a-ball at the end of the powerplay. Any hopes of Sri Lanka coming close to chasing the total ended with her dismissal in the tenth over.

Anticipating Athapaththu would look to attack, Deepti shortened her length, making her charge down the pitch. But the ball turned away sharply, beating Athapaththu’s attempted shot, and Ghosh completed a straightforward stumping, dismissing the Sri Lanka captain for 36. Deepti struck once more in the over, having Gunaratne bowled, leaving Sri Lanka needing 121 off the last ten.

As has been the case throughout the tournament, India’s spinners showed their prowess, never letting Sri Lanka even have a sniff at the game thereon. Wickets fell regularly, with Charani removing Harshitha Samarawickrama, the hero of the 2024 Asia Cup with a sharp return catch for 9.

Charani then picked up two wickets in the over. Kavisha Dilhari fell first, slicing a thick outside edge towards short third, following which Nilakshika Silva, who was playing with a broken finger, top-edged a shot towards deep square leg.

India were sloppy in the field, dropping five catches but it was too late for Sri Lanka to capitalise on the chances. Deepti finished with three wickets and Charani with four, finishing as the tournament’s top two wicket-takers, as India bowled Sri Lanka out for 111 on the last ball of the innings.

Scores:
India Women  183 for 5 in 20 overs  (Smriti Mandhana 59, Shafali Verma 68, Harmanpreet Kaur 14,  Richa Ghosh 17, Gunalan Kamalini 15*; Mithalia Ayodhya 1-33, Chamari Athapaththu 1-34, Chamudi Prabodha 1-40) beat Sri Lanka Women 111 all out in 20 overs (Chamari Athapaththu 36, Vishmi Gunarathne 20, Nilakshika Silva 22; Kranti Gaud 1-08, Shafali Verma 1-23, Shree Charani 4-20, Deepti Sharma 3-19, Prema Rawat 1-22) by 72 runs

[Cricinfo]

‎Rumesh Tharanga outsmarted a strong field including his closest rivals this season, Anderson Peters and Julian Webber to clinch the men’s javelin title of the inaugural Ultimate Championship in Budapest.

‎The Diamond League champion overtook Webber and Peters with his third round throw which was measured at 87.11 metres before further improving the distance to a colossal 91.01metres, the third time the 23 year old has exceeded the 90 meters mark this season.

‎The two-time world champion Peters finished second with 86.18m.

‎European champion Weber, who led in the first round, finished third with 85.89m. (RF)

If spin is to decide the Women’s T20 Asia Cup final, both India and Sri Lanka have plenty to call upon. India’s spin attack, led by Deepti Sharma, has taken 26 wickets in the tournament,  the most by a side. Sri Lanka are next with 25. That makes it seem like a spin vs spin and more spin kind of title contest.

On the plus side for India is that they have appeared well-rounded on the whole. Smriti Sharma and Shafali Verma have scored the bulk of the runs.

Sri Lanka, by contrast, have had to fight for momentum with the bat on the slow Dubai pitches. They were 33 for 4 in the semi final against Pakistan before Hrshitha Samarawickrema and Kavisha Dilhari revived and then completed the chase. Prior to that, they were 44 for 5 against Bangladesh and had to depend on Samarawickrama’s composed knock to seal their semi-final spot. They were also 45 for 5 against Indonesia in the league stage, before Nilakshi Silva lifted them.

That batting order has looked shaky. Chamari Athapaththu allying just 63 runs from four innings and Imesha Dulani 64 from four innings is a concern. And India’s bowling – quick bowler Nandani Sharma has been in good form too – might be tougher to handle than what Sri Lanka have faced so far.