Harmanpreet Kaur and Co. made a great start to the Sri Lanka Women India Tour 2025 and secured a spot. Comfortable win by eight wickets At the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
Disciplined Indian bowling restricted Sri Lanka to 121
India’s decision to bowl first paid immediate dividends. Kranti Goud provided the early success by dismissing the dangerous Sri Lankan captain, Chamari Athapaththu for 15 runs. While Vishami Gunaratne played a brilliant inning of 39 runs in 43 balls, he struggled to find consistent support at the other end.
Indian spinners applied the brakes effectively in the middle overs. Deepti Sharma performed brilliantly, conceding just 20 runs in her four overs and taking the wicket of Hasini Perera. Debutant Vaishnavi Sharma also played an important role by maintaining an economy rate of just 4.00. Sri Lanka’s innings was further derailed by three crucial run-outs, including some sharp work by Richa Ghosh behind the stumps. Despite late efforts from Harshita Madavi (21), Sri Lanka could only manage 121/6 in their 20 overs.
Jemimah Rodrigues helps India reach the target quickly
Chasing the target of 122 runs, India started with an explosive burst from Shafali Verma, who scored 9 runs in 5 balls before becoming the victim of Kavya Kavindi. However, early wickets did not slow down India’s momentum. Smriti Mandhana (25) and jemima rodrigues Combined for a partnership of 54 runs, the game was taken away from the visitors.
Rodriguez was in great form and was striking the ball with accuracy and intent. She remained unbeaten on 69 off just 44 balls, an innings that included ten fours at a strike rate of 156.82. His aggressive approach ensured that India remained well ahead of the required run rate throughout the powerplay and beyond.
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Clinical Completion by Rodrigues Harmanpreet Kaur
After Mandhana was dismissed by the experienced Inoka Ranaweera in the ninth over, captain Harmanpreet Kaur joined Rodrigues in the closing stages. Kaur continued to play a supporting role, scoring 15 runs in 16 balls, while Rodrigues continued to hit boundaries with ease.
The two made an unbeaten 55-run partnership to take India to 122/2 in just 14.4 overs. The comprehensive nature of the win highlighted India’s depth and tactical superiority, particularly in the bowling and fielding departments, with half of Sri Lanka’s wickets falling through run-outs.
Jemimah Rodrigues shines in India’s win over Sri Lanka#Cricket #INDWvSLW #1st t20i pic.twitter.com/tbN2zVGZM3
– WomenCricket.com (@WomenCricketHQ) 22 December 2025
With a 1-0 lead in the five-match series, Team India is heading into the next match with significant momentum. Sri Lanka’s focus will be on improving their strike rotation and finding ways to counter India’s disciplined spin attack. The two teams will meet again on Tuesday as Sri Lanka looks to bounce back and level the series in what promises to be an exciting tour.
This article was first published here WomenCricket.comA Cricket Times Company.
