Chamari Atapattu steers Sri Lanka Women to victory
Sri Lanka Women eked out a four-wicket win over South Africa Women in the third One-Day International at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on Sunday (October 19), levelling the four-match series at 1-1.
After Ama Kanchana’s three-wicket haul restricted South Africa to 139 for 7 in a match truncated to 27-overs-a-side, Chamari Atapattu held her own with a solid 63 as Sri Lanka overcame a few jitters to win with an over to spare.
South Africa was on target to post much more than it eventually did, as Lizelle Lee and Trisha Chetty, the openers, put on 42. The good work was carried forward by Mignon du Preez, the captain, who top-scored with 34. Du Preez’s 48-run stand for the fourth wicket with Marizanne Kapp gave South Africa the upper hand, before a clutch of wickets hampered its progress.
Chasing a revised Duckworth-Lewis target of 143, Sri Lanka made its intentions clear as the openers attacked at the start. Prasadani Weerakody, the wicketkeeper, smashed 17 off 11 balls before being caught behind by Chetty off Kapp. But Atapattu found an able ally in Yasoda Mendis as the two put together a crucial 50-run stand before a direct hit from Chetty sent back Mendis for 26.
Shashikala Siriwardene, the former captain, played herself in and got the team past the 100-run mark, but her wicket triggered a collapse, as Sri Lanka slipped from a comfortable 106 for 3 to 128 for 6, with Shabnim Ismail, the medium pacer, picking up two wickets.
Chamari Polgampola and Hasini Perera then squeezed out the remaining runs as Sri Lanka picked up two vital points that helped it leapfrog India to No. 5 in the ICC Women’s World Championship table. South Africa, who won the series opener by 53 runs, was at No. 4, owing to a better net-run-rate.
West Indies and Australia lead the charts after Round One, with three wins in as many matches, while England occupies the third spot.
All the teams play each other once twice, on a home and away basis, with the top four earning a direct entry into the ICC Women’s World Cup 2014. The bottom four will then play in a qualifier with four associate teams to determine the remaining spots in the eight-nation tournament to be played in England and Wales in 2017.
Upcoming fixtures
Australia Women vs West Indies Women – November 11
Australia Women vs West Indies Women – November 13
Australia Women vs West Indies Women – November 16
Points table
| ICC Women’s Championship 2014 – 2016 Date: 19 October 2014 |
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| Teams | P | W | L | Tie | N/R | Points | NRR | For | Against |
| West Indies | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1.712 | 465/107.5 | 392/150 |
| Australia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1.357 | 477/93.4 | 467/125 |
| England | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0.686 | 367/80.1 | 312/80.1 |
| South Africa | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0.583 | 364/77 | 315/76 |
| Sri Lanka | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | -0.583 | 315/76 | 364/77 |
| India | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -0.686 | 312/80.1 | 367.80.1 |
| Pakistan | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.357 | 467/125 | 477/93.4 |
| New Zealand | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.712 | 392/150 | 465/107.5 |
