Sri Lanka Women U19 have had a nearly flawless run on their tour of Pakistan, where they won six out of their seven fixtures, including the tri-series final. After eliminating Pakistan Women U19, Sri Lanka set a date with Bangladesh for the final and defeated them by four runs to bag the trophy. It was a close contest.
In fact, it was way closer than the contest that unfolded when the two teams played ahead of the final, where Sri Lanka bowled out Bangladesh for just 58 runs and went on to win the game by eight wickets.
Sri Lanka got off to a flier
Batting first in the final after Bangladesh won the toss, Sri Lanka batters hardly wasted any time before taking Bangladesh bowlers to the cleaners. Openers Vimoksha Balasuriya and Sanjana Kavindi got the team off to a flier, putting on 62 runs in the powerplay.
Balasuriya’s dismissal in the sixth over put a stop to the carnage, and the incoming batters could not replicate her spoils. No more wickets fell for Sri Lanka until the thirteenth over, though run-scoring had reduced despite Kavindi’s best efforts. It was Kavindi who fell to Nishita Akter Nishi, as she tried going big in a bid to pace up the run-scoring.
Bangladesh bowlers made a decent recovery, especially in the death and middle overs. Sri Lanka, who were 104 for 2 when Kavindi fell in the 13th over, could only creep to 122 by the end of the 16th. The last over brought a bit more drama as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh players tried their best to make the most of what was left.
Following two no-balls that fetched the batting side twelve runs in the first two legal deliveries, Sri Lanka batters decided to outdo Bangladesh bowlers in farce. Danodya Sewmini and Pramudi Methsara were both run out during the last over, which could only take Sri Lanka to a 158-run total.
Bangladesh middle order kept them in the hunt
Both Bangladesh openers went back to the hut without disturbing the scorers as Chamodhi Herath and Danodya Sewmini made early inroads. Chamudi Praboda soon joined them on the wicket-takers list as she sent Shirina Khatun packing in the fifth over. They ended the powerplay for just 32 runs, ten of which came off the last two balls as Sadia Islam hit a six and a four.
It was Islam who joined forces with Nishita Akter Nishi to give Bangladesh a fighting chance. The two batters stitched together a 67-run partnership off just 51 balls. After Nishita departed, the skipper was joined by Sadia Akter, both of whom kept adding quick runs to the total.
By the time the final over came, Bangladesh were only 19 runs away from the win. Akter struck a maximum and then ran a couple after the first two balls were spent taking singles. However, she was dismissed on the penultimate ball of the innings. A four by Jennat ul Ferdous ended the game with Bangladesh still four runs short.
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