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Jemimah Rodrigues and bowlers lead India to comprehensive win over Sri Lanka in first T20I Read

By Sandy Verma

Harmanpreet Kaur and her team got off to a great start to the Sri Lanka Women’s India Tour 2025 at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. Comfortable eight wicket win Achieved.

Disciplined Indian bowling restricted Sri Lanka to 121

India’s decision to bowl first proved immediately fruitful. Kranti Goud provided the early success by dismissing the dangerous Sri Lankan captain, Chamari Athapattu for 15 runs. While Vishmi Gunaratne played a fighting inning of 39 runs off 43 balls, he did not get consistent support from the other end.

The Indian spinners applied the brakes effectively in the middle overs. Deepti Sharma performed brilliantly, giving only 20 runs in her four overs and taking the wicket of Hasini Perera. Debutant Vaishnavi Sharma also played a key role, maintaining an economy rate of just 4.00. Sri Lanka’s innings was further hampered by three crucial run-outs, including the quick stumping of Richa Ghosh. Despite late efforts from Harshita Madavi (21), Sri Lanka could only manage 121/6 in 20 overs.

Jemimah Rodrigues leads India’s fast race

India’s chase of 122 runs started with a stellar performance from Shafali Verma, who lost her wicket to Kavya Kavindi after scoring 9 runs in 5 balls. However, this early wicket played no role in slowing down India’s pace. Smriti Mandhana (25) and jemima rodrigues Made a partnership of 54 runs, which effectively took the game away from the visiting team.

Rodriguez was in great form, playing the ball with precision and intent. He scored an unbeaten 69 off just 44 balls, which included ten fours, and had a strike rate of 156.82. His aggressive approach ensures that India remain well ahead of the required run rate in the powerplay and beyond.

Clinical finish from Rodrigues and Harmanpreet Kaur

After Mandhana was dismissed by the experienced Inoka Ranaweera in the ninth over, captain Harmanpreet Kaur took over the final stages with Rodrigues. Kaur played a steady supporting role, scoring 15 runs off 16 balls, while Rodrigues kept hitting fours with ease.

The pair stitched an unbeaten 55-run partnership, taking India to 122/2 in just 14.4 overs. The comprehensiveness of the victory highlighted India’s depth and strategic superiority, especially in the bowling and fielding departments, which took half of the Sri Lankan wickets through run-outs.

With a 1-0 lead in the five-match series, Team India will go into the next encounter with significant enthusiasm. For Sri Lanka, the focus will be on improving their strike rotation and finding ways to counter India’s disciplined spin attack. The two teams will meet again on Tuesday, when Sri Lanka will look to bounce back and level the series in what promises to be an exciting tour.

Also Read: Shubman Gill vs Sanju Samson T20I stats ahead of T20 World Cup 2026

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