New Delhi: Jemimah Rodrigues scored 76 off just 53 deliveries, leading India to a cracking start to their Asia Cup campaign. Sri Lanka tried to fight back by taking wickets in death overs and Harshitha Samarawickrama laid the base for the second inning, but the effort went in vain after runouts and Dayalan Hemalatha’s golden arm came into play.
Jemimah was making a comeback after an injury, but she looked more than ready to hit the free-flowing drives. Sri Lanka started well by dismissing both the openers early. It was the 92-run stand between Jemimah and captain Harmanpreet Kaur that helped Indian progress at a healthy run rate. Oshadi Ranasinghe, Sri Lanka’s most successful bowler in the game, helped her team to make a comeback by dismissing Harmanpreet Kaur for 33(30). India stood at 115/3 after 15.5 overs and eyed at least 160. The Sri Lankan bowlers did a good job as captain Chamari Athapaththu dismissed and Jemimah and everybody else followed. India ended up scoring 150/6 with Ranasinghe picking 3 for 32.
Harshitha Samarawickrama hit Renuka for 13 runs in the first over and showed intent. Meanwhile, Deepti Sharma dismissed Athapaththu and ran out Malsha Shehani. While Sri Lanka tried to keep the scoreboard ticking, India Pooja Vastrakar did the job in the middle by picking up two. Hemalatha came and picked three wickets in the end to finish Sri Lanka’s inning for 109.
Meanwhile, Richa Ghosh was out due to cramps and Shafali Verma put on the gloves. With bowling in England, wicket keeping in Asia Cup, out of form is still contributing significantly. Rodrigues was named the Player of the Match for her inning with the bat. India’s three spinners and a part-timer combination worked in the game.
