India won by eight wickets against Sri Lanka in the third women’s T20Is to seal the five-match series
Renuka returned in style with 4/21 while Deepti claimed 3/18 to become the joint-highest wicket-taker in women’s T20Is
Shafali smashed 79 not out off 42 balls, hitting 11 fours and three sixes, to chase down the target
Renuka Singh Thakur and Deepti Sharma delivered a devastating bowling display before Shafali Verma’s unbeaten 79 powered India to a commanding eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the third Women’s T20I at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday, sealing the five-match series with games to spare.
The win handed India an unassailable 3-0 lead, cementing their complete dominance across departments. The contest followed a familiar pattern, with India first strangling Sri Lanka to a modest total before cruising through the chase with ease.
Renuka Returns In Style, Deepti Rewrites Records
Playing her first T20I since December last year, Renuka marked her return in emphatic fashion, producing a fiery spell of 4/21 to dismantle Sri Lanka’s top order. Her incisive new-ball bowling set the tone as Sri Lanka were restricted to 112/7.
The ever-reliable Deepti Sharma (3/18) provided relentless support, striking at key moments and etching her name into the record books. With her three wickets, Deepti became the joint-highest wicket-taker in women’s T20I history, drawing level with Australia’s Megan Schutt on 151 wickets in the format.
Sri Lanka, desperate to stay alive in the series, got a brisk start through Hasini Perera (25), who struck two boundaries to collect 12 runs from the opening over, bowled by Renuka.
Perera mixed caution with innovation, even scooping the ball over the wicketkeeper for another boundary, helping skipper Chamari Athapaththu (3) weather early pressure despite struggling to rotate the strike.
India, however, clawed back swiftly. Deepti provided the breakthrough as Athapaththu charged down the track, only to top-edge to skipper Harmanpreet Kaur. Renuka then returned for her second spell and struck twice in the sixth over.
She first removed the in-form Perera, before completing a sharp caught-and-bowled to dismiss Harshitha Samarawickrama (2), leaving Sri Lanka reeling at 32/3.
Renuka struck again in the 10th over, trapping Nilakshika Silva leg-before, tightening India’s grip further. A 40-run stand between Kavisha Dilhari (20) and Imesha Dulani briefly steadied the innings, but Deepti ended the resistance by claiming the 150th T20I wicket of her career, dismissing Dilhari.
From there on, Renuka and Deepti continued to strike at regular intervals, ensuring Sri Lanka never regained momentum and were confined to a below-par total.
Shafali Verma’s Fireworks Seal Chase
Chasing 113, Shafali Verma picked up exactly where she had left off in the previous match, unleashing a breathtaking assault to finish unbeaten on 79 off 42 balls. The explosive opener single-handedly dismantled the Sri Lankan attack, guiding India home with 40 balls to spare.
After beginning with three dot balls, Shafali danced down the track to smash a towering 83-metre six over long-off, before following it up with back-to-back boundaries through midwicket and mid-off. Timing the ball to perfection, she punished the bowlers with authority, hammering 11 boundaries and three sixes in a dazzling display of power hitting.
Spinner Kavisha Dilhari (2/18) briefly stalled India’s momentum by removing vice-captain Smriti Mandhana (1), whose lean patch continued, and Jemimah Rodrigues. However, the result was never in doubt as Shafali finished the chase with a boundary.
(With PTI Inputs)
