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Athapaththu’s 195* trumps Wolvaardt’s 184* in epic Sri Lanka chase

Published

2 years ago

2024/04/18

Priyan

Chamari Athapaththu bossed the chase by smashing her career-best 195 not out (Cricinfo)

Sri Lanka completed the highest successful chase in women’s ODIs, against South Africa, and the only one over 300 thanks to a sensational 195* from their captain Chamari Athapaththu. She finished with her career-best ODI score and the third highest individual score by a batter in women’s ODIs to help Sri Lanka level the series 1-1.

In a battle of the captains, Athapaththu’s knock trumped Laura Wolvaardt’s 184* – the highest by a South African player and her fourth hundred since being named captain last September. She led South Africa to their fifth highest ODI score and highest against Sri Lanka but it was not enough.

Athapaththu and Nilakshika de Silva shared in a 179-run fifth-wicket partnership – the second-highest stand for the fifth-wicket or lower in the women’s game – and rescued Sri Lanka from 126 for 4 in the 21st over. Crucially, Sri Lanka gained two points on the ICC Womens Championship table, which determines qualification for the 2025 ODI World Cup. They move up to seventh spot and remain in the race for automatic entry to India next year – the top five teams along with the hosts will go through – with six matches left to play.

Sri Lanka leave South Africa after their most successful visit to these shores. Along with a squared ODI series, they won the T20I series 2-1 – their first series win over South Africa. In the immediate aftermath of that win, Athapaththu hinted international retirement but the form she displayed in the third ODI in Potchefstroom suggested she is nowhere near ready to put the bat down.

Sri Lanka had never scored 300 in an ODI before, much less chased that much but on a flat pitch with a fast outfield, Athapaththu fancied their chances. She hit the ball cleanly, was brutal straight down the ground and quick between the wickets and that was after opening the bowling and delivering a full quota of ten overs with a return of 1 for 59.

She was the senior partner in her opening stand with 18-year-old Vishmi Gunaratne and took the fight to South Africa. They put on 90 inside 16 overs before Gunaratne was given out lbw to Delmi Tucker, who was also involved in the second wicket. She took a good catch at backward point to dismiss Prasadani Weerakkody off Nadine de Klerk’s bowling and South Africa sensed an opportunity to make inroads into Sri Lanka’s middle order.

Wolvaardt brought back Ayabonga Khaka, playing in her 100th ODI, and she had immediate success. She had Hansima Karunaratne caught behind, chasing a wide one, off the first ball of her fourth over and Kavisha Dilhari caught behind down the leg side two balls later. Sinalo Jafta took both catches but the second one did her dirty as her shoulder hit the ground awkwardly and she had to leave the field. Uncapped 16-year-old Karabo Meso replaced her behind the stumps and thought she had wicket off De Silva’s first ball but umpire Jacqueline Williams was unmoved. Sri Lanka were 126 for 4 in the 21st over and Athapaththu was still there.

The Sri Lankan captain was unfazed by the mini-collapse and simply kept batting. She brought up a hundred off 78 balls in the 26th over and kept Sri Lanka on track as South Africa unraveled. Their fielding was sloppy; overthrows were offered aplenty and importantly, Athapaththu was dropped on 128 by Sune Luus at deep mid-wicket off Nonkululeko Mlaba in the 32nd over. At the time, Sri Lanka still needed 106 runs from 18.3 overs.

Athapaththu made the most of her let-off and continued to breeze her way through the chase with Silva providing strong support and South Africa losing their way. They sent down 19 wides and two no-balls in total and Sri Lanka cashed in. Athapaththu and de Silva combined boundary hitting with exceptional strike rotation and reached the target with five-and-half-overs – 33 balls – to spare to share the trophy

Earlier, South Africa would have been confident of claiming it after Wolvaardt scored her fastest – off 100 balls – and second successive hundred in the series against Sri Lanka. In the absence of Tazmin Brits – who underwent surgery on a meniscus tear in her left knee today – Wolvaardt has embraced the responsibility of both anchoring and accelerating the innings. She was the dominant partner in the opening partnership of 116 with Lara Goodall and scored 83 off 74 balls, while Goodall, playing in her 50th ODI, contributed 31 off 55.

South Africa’s innings stuttered through the middle period as the Sri Lankan spinners squeezed them. Goodall, Tucker and Luus were dismissed for eight runs in the space of 18 balls, but recovered thanks to their most reliable allrounder Marizanne Kapp. She and Wolvaardt shared a run-a-ball partnership of 63, and Kapp was at the other end when Wolvaardt reached her hundred before she was run-out at the end of the 35th over. South Africa were 187 for 4 at the time and the arrival of de Klerk brought an increased intensity.

De Klerk and Wolvaardt put on 92 in 80 balls for the sixth wicket, with de Klerk just establishing herself as a finisher, it was Wolvaardt who was aggressive in the stand. She hit her next 84 runs in 47 balls and South Africa scored 114 runs in their last 15 overs, at 7.6 runs an over, which seemed to set them up well until Athapaththu had the final say.

Scores:
Sri Lanka 305 for 4 in 44.3 overs (Vishmi gunarathne 26, Chamari Athapaththu 195*, Nilakshika de Silva 50*; Ayabonga Khaka 2-54, Nadine de Klerk 1-59, Delmi Tucker 1-42) beat South Africa 301 for 5 in 50 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 184*, Lara Goodall 31, Marizanne Kapp 36, Nadine de Klerk 35; Kavisha Dilhari 2-47, Chamari Athapaththu 1-59) by six wickets

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Jacks out with illness as Sri Lanka bat against England

Published

48 mins ago

2026/01/22

Priyan

Charith Asalanka and Harry Brook with the series trophy

Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bat first in the opening ODI in Colombo, a venue that has historically been difficult for chasing teams. England captain Harry Brook said his team would have batted first as well.

England made one change to the XI they had named on the eve of the match, with allrounder Will Jacks having taken ill overnight. Jacks, an offspin-bowling allrounder, has been replaced in the XI by legspinning allrounder Rehan Ahmed.

Sri Lanka, meanwhile, have opted for a young attack, perhaps with a view to resting the more experienced bowlers for the T20Is coming up. There is no Wanindu Hasaranga or Maheesh Theekshana in the XI. Left-arm spinner Dunith Wellalage and legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay will lead the spin attack instead, with the likes of Dhananjaya de Silva and Charith Asalanka also able to bowl.

Asitha Fernando and Pramod Madushan are the frontline seamers.

Although conditions were warm and fair at the toss, there is a chance showers could roll through later.

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook (capt.), Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Curran, Rehan Ahmed, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Adil Rashid

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis (wk), Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Janith Liyanage, Pavan Ratnayake, Dunith Wellalage, Pramod Madushan, Jeffrey Vandersay, Asitha Fernando

[Cricinfo]

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New integrated framework to bring all stakeholders together to safeguard and rebuild Central highlands – President

Published

7 hours ago

2026/01/22

Priyan

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake stated that the isolated functioning of institutions responsible for construction and land management, agriculture, livestock and environmental conservation has posed challenges in restoring the Central Highlands, which were devastated by Cyclone Ditwah. The President further noted that efforts are underway to establish a new integrated framework, bringing together all relevant parties to swiftly safeguard and rebuild the Central Highlands

The President made these remarks during a discussion held on Wednesday (21) at the Presidential Secretariat with representatives from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and relevant government and private sector institutions, focusing on securing the Central Highlands and restoring forest plantations.

It was emphasized that nearly 4,000 landslides have occurred in the Central Highlands due to Cyclone Ditwa and that prolonged unauthorized construction, cultivation activities and lack of proper maintenance have contributed to this situation. The discussion also stressed the urgent need for a national policy to secure the Central Highlands and ensure its preservation for future generations.

The discussion also addressed the need for an Authority empowered under the relevant legislation to oversee these activities and President Anura Kumara Dissanayake instructed officials to expedite the implementation.

Representatives from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) emphasized the necessity of maintaining a dedicated financial fund for these initiatives and confirmed their full support to Sri Lanka for the restoration of the Central Highlands.

Representatives who attended included Country Operations Head, ADB Sri Lanka Resident Mission, Cholpon Mambetova, Senior Agricultural and Natural Resources Specialist at the ADB Sumith Pokhrel and Assistant Project Officer Krishanthi Dabare, UNDP Resident Representative in Sri Lanka Azusa Kubota and programme representatives Wageesha Gunasekara and Sugandhi Samarasinghe.

Also participating were Commissioner-General of Essential Services and Secretary to the Ministry of Plantation and Community Infrastructure, Prabath Chandrakeerthi, Secretary to the Ministry of Housing, Construction and Water Supply, Engineer L. Kumudu Lal Bogahawatta along with senior officials from the relevant Ministries and heads of other government and private institutions.

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ICC T20 World Cup Trophy tour in Sri Lanka launched under President’s patronage

Published

7 hours ago

2026/01/22

Priyan

The official tour showcasing the ICC T20 World Cup trophy, which will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka in 2026, was formally inaugurated on Wednesday (21) at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

The trophy will be displayed in several major cities across the island from Wednesday 21st until Saturday 24th, over a period of four days. Cricket fans will have the opportunity to see the golden trophy up close during the Sri Lanka vs England One-Day International match at the R. Premadasa International Stadium in Colombo.

Subsequently, plans are in place to take the trophy to the cities of Kandy, Dambulla and Jaffna, providing cricket enthusiasts in those regions as well with the opportunity to take commemorative photographs with the World Cup trophy and view it. The primary aim of this tour is to generate excitement and build spectator interest in the lead-up to hosting a World Cup tournament in the country.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held from 7th February to 8th March 2026 co-hosted by Sri Lanka and India. This World Cup is the largest tournament Sri Lanka will host since the T20 World Cup held in 2012.

The tournament schedule was revealed on 25th November 2025 in India, where the International Cricket Council (ICC) selected the R. Premadasa International Stadium in Colombo, the Pallekele International Stadium and the Colombo SSC Ground as the venues for matches in Sri Lanka.

Accordingly, 8 matches are scheduled at the R. Premadasa International Stadium, 5 matches at the Colombo SSC Ground and 7 matches at the Pallekele International Stadium.

Twenty countries are set to participate in this tournament. Twenty matches of the tournament are scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka, with all matches involving the Pakistan team to be played in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, a special feature is that if the Pakistan team qualifies for the semi-finals and the final, Sri Lanka will also host those two matches.

In that event, the final will be held at the R. Premadasa International Stadium in Colombo, increasing the number of matches scheduled for Sri Lanka to 22.

Apart from the host nations Sri Lanka and India, Test-playing nations England, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, West Indies, Bangladesh, Ireland, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan will be represented in this tournament. Additionally, the United States of America, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, Namibia, Nepal, Oman and the United Arab Emirates are the other contributing countries.

The T20 World Cup to be held in Sri Lanka at the beginning of 2026 can be considered an excellent opportunity to deliver effective value to the country’s economy, tourism industry, sports development, international promotion and society.

In particular, the arrival of teams, media groups and thousands of spectators, including foreign tourists, will generate significant foreign exchange earnings for the country. It is also expected to create short and long-term employment opportunities in various sectors including hotel and food & beverage businesses, transport services and technical and operational services.

By Sri Lanka hosting this tournament, long-term benefits such as increased opportunities for new investments as Sri Lanka is recognised worldwide as a tourist destination, the identification of Sri Lanka as a year-round sports tourism hub and the strengthening of Sri Lanka’s international profile leading to an enhancement of the country’s value, will be attained.

Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Sunil Gamage, Deputy Minister of Sports, Sugath Tilakaratne, Director General of Sports, S. Achchudan, Sri Lanka Cricket President, Shammi Silva along with the Executive Committee and a group including Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup team captain Dasun Shanaka and Head Coach, Sanath Jayasuriya were also present at the occasion.