Sensational centuries from opener Vishmi Gunaratne and top-order batter Harshitha Samarawickrama helped Sri Lanka women claim a confident 8-wicket win against Pakistan women in the second ODI. They levelled the three-match series 1-1 after a dominating performance.
After Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field first, Pakistan posted a competitive total of 273 for 5 in their allotted 50 overs. The seasoned opener Sidra Ameen scored an unbeaten 100 off 120 balls, decorated with 13 boundaries. After losing early wickets, Pakistan built solid middle-order partnerships, thanks to a brisk 49 off 45 deliveries from Ayesha Zafar and a steady 45 from wicketkeeper-batter Muneeba Ali. Fatima Sana, the skipper provided late acceleration with a fiery 18-ball 25 before being dismissed by Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu. Sri Lanka’s disciplined bowling attack kept the run rate under control on a good batting surface, with Athapaththu, Kavisha Dilhari, Inoka Ranaweera, and Chethana Vimukthi claiming a wicket apiece.
Chasing a target of 274, Sri Lanka suffered an early blow. Athapaththu was caught behind off Fatima Sana for just 1 run in the fifth over. However, soon Vishmi Gunaratne was joined by Harshitha Samarawickrama and the duo constructed a masterclass in ODI chasing.
Gunaratne paced her innings expertly, bringing up her century off 123 balls with 11 fours and a towering six. She handled Pakistan’s spin-heavy attack with ease, finding gaps consistently and keeping the required run rate comfortably under control. Samarawickrama provided the ideal support. With patience with timely aggression she reached 100 off 119 deliveries, including 9 boundaries.
When Gunaratne was eventually dismissed after scoring 123, Sri Lanka were already on the brink of victory. All-rounder Kavisha Dilhari joined Samarawickrama at the crease and delivered a quickfire unbeaten 40 off 33 balls with five boundaries. With Samarawickrama holding firm at the other end on 100*, Sri Lanka women cruised past the target.
They reached 275/2 in 46.5 overs with 19 balls to spare whereas Pakistan bowlers struggled to find the rhythm. Fatima Sana and Nashra Sandhu were the only wicket-takers for them, as Pakistan’s bowlers failed to break through the record-setting partnership.
With the series tied at 1-1, both teams will head into the third and ODI in Hambantota with everything to play for.
Brief Scores: Pakistan 273/5 in 50 overs (Sidra Ameen 100*, Ayesha Zafar 49; Chethana Vimukthi 1-26) lost to Sri Lanka 275/2 in 46.5 overs (Vishmi Gunaratne 123, Harshitha Samarawickrama 100*; Fatima Sana 1-44) by 8 wickets.
Player of the Match: Vishmi Gunaratne
