Pitch Report
Pitch number 9 was used for today’s match. It was a dry and firm surface. During the pitch report, Nassar Hussain mentioned that it could assist the spinners in the latter half of the game. The square boundaries were 58 and 63 meters respectively, while the straight boundary was 67 meters in length.
Toss
Chamari Athapaththu won the toss and chose to bat first. Although the weather was cloudy and humid, Chamari said the decision was based on the fact that Sri Lanka had failed to chase in both previous matches of the series.
New Zealand captain Sophie Devine stated that bowling first had been their plan as well.
Teams
Sri Lanka made two changes to their lineup. Right-arm seamer Malki Madara replaced left-arm pacer Udeshika Prabodhani, while batting all-rounder Piumi Watsala came in for Devmi Vihanga.
New Zealand made one change — Lea Tahuhu, who took three wickets in the previous game, was rested and Bree Illing came into the side.
Sri Lanka’s Innings (360 view)
Sri Lanka’s batting order was well-structured. Openers Vishmi Gunaratne and Chamari Athapaththu got off to a strong start, putting together a century partnership — the second-best stand of the tournament and Sri Lanka’s highest so far.
Vishmi was given out caught behind off Amelia Kerr, but Chamari reviewed the decision. Replays showed the ball had brushed the pad before glancing the bat, so the decision was overturned and Vishmi survived.
While all New Zealand bowlers struggled, skipper Sophie Devine applied pressure with two tight overs. In her third over, bowling around the wicket, she dismissed Chamari, who lofted a catch to Maddy Green at deep extra cover.
Vishmi offered two aerial chances — one to Devine and another to Suzie Bates — but both were dropped. However, she was later bowled by Rosemary Mair for 42.
A solid 58-run partnership between Harshitha Samarawickrama and Hasini Perera was built off 72 balls. Despite Devine rotating her bowlers and attempting to induce false shots, both batters played responsibly.
Eventually, Harshitha fell for 26 and Hasini for 44, both giving catches to Izzy Gaze off Bree Illing’s bowling.
Aggressive batting from Nilakshika Silva lifted Sri Lanka’s finish. She completed her half-century off just 26 balls and remained unbeaten on 55 off 28. Sri Lanka added 80 runs in the final 10 overs to post 258 for 6 at the end of 50 overs.
Sophie Devine took 3 wickets for 54, while Bree Illing claimed 2 for 39.
Stats
The 101-run stand between Chamari and Vishmi was Sri Lanka’s third century partnership in Women’s World Cup history. It also became the highest partnership ever recorded by a Sri Lankan pair in ODIs, breaking the previous record held by Chamari Polgampola and Dedunu de Silva from 2009.
Chamari registered her 20th ODI fifty in this match.
Nilakshika Silva reached 1,000 career ODI runs, and her 26-ball fifty equaled Richa Ghosh’s record for the fastest fifty by an Asian woman in ODIs. Incidentally, Nilakshika also held the previous Sri Lankan record — a 28-ball fifty against India.
Stats
Unfortunately, rain arrived before New Zealand’s innings could begin. Despite multiple inspections, the outfield remained unplayable, and the match was eventually called off.
Both teams shared the points equally, with the contest officially declared a no result.
