Visakhapatnam: Superb spells by spinners N. Shree Charani (2-23) and Vaishnavi Sharma (2-32) helped India reduce Sri Lanka Women to 128/9 in 20 overs at the Dr. Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Tuesday.
Having opted to bowl first, the hosts struck early and maintained pressure throughout the innings, picking up wickets at regular intervals. Sri Lanka had managed 121 in the first T20I and showed only marginal improvement this time with a total of 128.
Sri Lanka suffered an early setback in the very first over as Kranti Gaud, living up to her reputation, removed Vishmi Gunaratne for 1, caught on the follow-through. Arundathi Reddy bowled a few loose deliveries, leaking runs, but the pressure kept on building on the visitors, who struggled to build momentum against a disciplined Indian bowling attack.
Despite adding 39 runs in the first six overs, Sri Lanka found themselves in trouble once again, with skipper Chamari Athapaththu scoring the bulk of the runs. Athapaththu struck two sixes in her 31 off 24 balls before being dismissed by Sneh Rana, the only change in either side for the second T20I after Deepti Sharma missed out due to a fever. India had earlier won the toss and elected to bowl again.
Harshitha Samarawickrama walked in at No. 3 and, along with Perera, steadied the innings. The pair rotated the strike well as Sri Lanka reached 66 for 2 at the halfway mark. However, with the field spread out, Perera struggled to find the boundary. He was eventually out for 22 off 28 balls by Shree Charani in the 13th over, which ended a 44-run partnership. Harshitha looked strong and scored 33 before getting run out in the 17th over.
Sri Lanka could not build momentum in the final stages. Nilakshi de Silva had a short stay, scoring 2 before being dismissed by Vaishnavi Sharma, who took her first T20I wicket. A late flurry of wickets meant the visitors finished their innings at 128 for 9. For India, Shree Charani (2/23) and Vaishnavi Sharma (2/32) took two wickets each, while Kranti Gaud (1/21) and Sneh Rana (1/11) added one each.
Brief scores:
Sri Lanka-W 128/9 in 20 overs (Harshitha Samarawickrama 33, Chamari Athapaththu 32; Shree Charani 2-23, Vaishnavi Sharma 2-32) against India
(IANS)
