Rajshahi: Hasini Perera played a brilliant knock of 95 runs as Sri Lanka Women completed a strong comeback in the ODI series with a comfortable seven-wicket win over Bangladesh in the final match of the series played at the Shahid Kamruzzaman Stadium on Saturday. With this, they have also clinched the series by 2-1.
Coming to bat first after losing the toss, the Bangladesh team scored 213 runs after losing 8 wickets in 50 overs with the help of a brilliant innings from Sobhana Mostary. While Sri Lanka chased a total in just 46.3 overs with the help of an amazing knock by Hasini Perera.
The chase did not begin perfectly for Sri Lanka as captain Chamari Athapaththu was dismissed early for 10 runs by Marufa Akter. However, Hasini Perera steadied the innings and took control of the chase.
Perera played a calm and composed knock, scoring 95 runs off 131 balls, hitting 13 boundaries. She built a crucial 108-run partnership with Imesha Dulani, who contributed a solid 56 from 79 balls. Their stand laid the foundation for the chase and put Sri Lanka firmly in control.
After Dulani was dismissed, Perera continued her good work and added another important partnership of 78 runs with Harshitha Samarawickrama. Harshitha remained unbeaten on 44 and played a key role in finishing the match.
Perera looked set for a well-deserved century but fell for 95, caught off the bowling of Sobhana Mostary with just nine runs needed. Despite that, Sri Lanka comfortably reached the target, with Hansima Karunaratne supporting Harshitha at the end.
Earlier, Bangladesh Women posted 213 for 8 after being asked to bat first. Their innings started poorly as they lost early wickets, putting them under pressure.
A recovery came through a 65-run partnership between Sobhana Mostary and captain Nigar Sultana. Sobhana was the top scorer with 74 runs off 80 balls, hitting eight fours, while Nigar added 40 runs.
However, Bangladesh struggled to build momentum in the later stages. Wickets kept falling at regular intervals, and they could not accelerate as much as they would have liked. Ritu Moni added a useful 20 runs lower down the order, helping the team cross the 200-run mark.
For Sri Lanka, Kavisha Dilhari was the standout bowler with three wickets, while Nimasha Meepage picked up two. Malki Madara and Athapaththu also chipped in with one wicket each.
In the chase, Sri Lanka maintained control throughout, especially after the big second-wicket partnership. Bangladesh bowlers tried to fight back, with Marufa Akter picking up two wickets, but they could not break the key partnerships at the right time.
The focus now shifts to the T20I series, which is set to begin on April 28 in Sylhet.
Brief Scores: Bangladesh women 213/ 8 in 50 overs (Sobhana 74, Nigar 40, Dilhari 3-48) lost to Sri Lanka 214/3 in 46.3 overs (Perera 95, Dulani 56, Marufa 2-49) by 7 wickets.
(IANS)
