Series: Commonwealth Games Qualifier Jan 2022
Venue: Kinrara Academy Oval
Format: T20I
Toss: Sri Lanka
Result: Sri Lanka by 109 runs
Chamari Atapattu won the toss for Sr Lanka and chose to bat. And how! A blazing innings for the skipper knocked the stuffing out of the Scotland bowlers and fielders.
Atapattu started aggressively and never let up, passing 50 at a strike rate of 200. Some blazing cover drives, both to, and over the boundary. A one handed leg side swipe that defied description was just one of her audacious shots on that side of the wicket. One of her sixes nearly smacked into the heavy roller.
Good, smart batting in support by Hasini Perera (17) and once those two had left some clever hitting, combined with excellent running between the wickets by Harshitha Madavi (23) and Nilakshika Silva (23) took Sri Lanka to a very healthy 182/4 after their twenty overs.
Scotland started with a flash but lost Sarah Bryce (11) and then a procession of wickets saw them collapse in a heap. They weren’t helped by what looked like a hamstring injury to top scorer Ellen Watson (30) and the absence of Lorna Jack who injured herself in the field. A dreadful start to Scotland’s campaign and given the injuries, hard to see them lift from here.
Sri Lanka’s bowlers were generally neat and tidy. Best were Sachini Nisansala (2-10) – her best wicket a runout off her own bowling – and Ama Kanchana (2-20) who came back well after a disastrous first over.
As Scotland try to pick themselves up and prepare for a must win match tomorrow against Malaysia, Sri Lanka have a day off. Player of the Match was officially awarded to Atapattu but chose to pass the award to Sachini Nisansala who was playing in her debut. A lovely gesture by the veteran skipper.
Scores:
Sri Lanka 182/4 (Chamari Atapattu 86, Katie McGill 1-4) 20 overs
Scotland 73/8 (Ellen Watson 30, Sachini Nisansala 2-10, Ama Kanchana 2-20) 0 overs
Player of the Match: Chamari Atapattu