It was a remarkable year for India Women, who finished 2025 in style by sealing a 5-0 clean sweep in the T20I series against Sri Lanka in Thiruvananthapuram, following their maiden ICC Women’s ODI World Cup triumph.
Chamari Athapaththu asked India to bat first after winning the toss for the second time in the series. Inoka Ranaweera and Malki Madara returned to the side in place of Malsha Shehani and Kawya Kavindi. Having already won the series, the hosts decided to rest Smriti Mandhana and Renuka Singh as they handed a debut to 17-year-old left-handed batter G. Kamalini, while Sneh Rana also came into the side.
A new combination saw the debutant open the batting alongside the in-form Shafali Verma for India. On the back of three consecutive fifties, the dangerous Verma tried to take on Nimesha Madushani straightaway but was caught at long-on in the second over. Kamalini’s stay at the crease did not last long as she was trapped LBW by Kavisha Dilhari, with India finishing the powerplay on 40/2.
Chamari Athapaththu dropped Harleen Deol in the sixth over, but the batter failed to capitalize and was cleaned up by Rashmika Sewwandi six balls later. The visitors kept chipping away as Athapaththu struck twice in two overs to dismiss Richa Ghosh and Deepti Sharma, leaving India 77/5 inside 11 overs.
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Harmanpreet Kaur was then joined by Amanjot Kaur, with the duo providing much-needed resistance for the home side by finding regular boundaries. In the process, the skipper registered her 15th T20I half-century, injecting momentum into the innings. The pair stitched together a 61-run stand off just 37 balls before both were dismissed in the space of five deliveries.
A fine knock from Harmanpreet came to an end as she scored a 43-ball 68, which included nine fours and a six. Amanjot also chipped in with a useful 21 before Arundhati Reddy contributed late with an unbeaten 27 off 11 balls, lifting India to 175/7 in 20 overs.
Sri Lanka lost Athapaththu early, but Hasini Perera and Imesha Dulani got their chase back on track, taking them closer to the 50-run mark at the end of the powerplay. Dulani looked confident at the crease and notched up her maiden T20I fifty, but fell soon after adding 79 runs for the second wicket with Perera.
That dismissal opened the doors as the hosts took two more wickets in quick succession, which saw Nilakshika Silva and Kavisha Dilhari walk back to the dressing room without making an impact. Playing her 89th T20I, Perera reached her maiden fifty. However, she was dismissed for a well-made 65 after attempting to hit Shree Charani for a third consecutive boundary.
Apart from Perera and Dulani, no Sri Lankan batter was able to contribute much. In the end, Sri Lanka managed 160 for 7, falling 15 runs short of the target. All the bowlers were among the wickets as India completed a 5-0 series sweep at home for the first time.
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Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shafali Verma | c Imesha Dulani b Nimasha Meepage | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 83.33 |
| Gunalan Kamalini | lbw b Kavisha Dilhari | 12 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Harleen Deol | b Rashmika Sewwandi | 13 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 118.18 |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | b Kavisha Dilhari | 68 | 43 | 9 | 1 | 158.14 |
| Richa Ghosh | c Kaushani Nuthyangana b Chamari Athapaththu | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 83.33 |
| Deepti Sharma | c Nimasha Meepage b Chamari Athapaththu | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 87.50 |
| Amanjot Kaur | c Kavisha Dilhari b Rashmika Sewwandi | 21 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 116.67 |
| Arundhati Reddy | not out | 27 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 245.45 |
| Sneh Rana | not out | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 133.33 |
| Extras | 9 (b 0 , lb 0 , nb 1, w 8, pen 0) |
| Total | 175/7 (20 Overs, RR: 8.75) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malki Madara | 4 | 0 | 37 | 0 | 9.25 | |
| Nimasha Meepage | 3 | 0 | 25 | 1 | 8.33 | |
| Kavisha Dilhari | 2 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 5.50 | |
| Inoka Ranaweera | 4 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 9.75 | |
| Rashmika Sewwandi | 4 | 0 | 36 | 2 | 9.00 | |
| Chamari Athapaththu | 3 | 0 | 21 | 2 | 7.00 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hasini Perera | b Shree Charani | 65 | 42 | 8 | 1 | 154.76 |
| Chamari Athapaththu | c Deepti Sharma b Arundhati Reddy | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 40.00 |
| Imesha Dulani | c Shafali Verma b Amanjot Kaur | 50 | 39 | 8 | 0 | 128.21 |
| Nilakshika Silva | lbw b Deepti Sharma | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 75.00 |
| Kavisha Dilhari | b Vaishnavi Sharma | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 125.00 |
| Harshitha Samarawickrama | c Harleen Deol b Sneh Rana | 8 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 88.89 |
| Kaushani Nuthyangana | run out (Harmanpreet Kaur) | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Rashmika Sewwandi | not out | 14 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 175.00 |
| Malki Madara | not out | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Extras | 7 (b 4 , lb 0 , nb 0, w 3, pen 0) |
| Total | 160/7 (20 Overs, RR: 8) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deepti Sharma | 4 | 0 | 28 | 1 | 7.00 | |
| Arundhati Reddy | 2 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 8.00 | |
| Sneh Rana | 4 | 0 | 31 | 1 | 7.75 | |
| Vaishnavi Sharma | 4 | 0 | 33 | 1 | 8.25 | |
| Shree Charani | 4 | 0 | 31 | 1 | 7.75 | |
| Amanjot Kaur | 2 | 0 | 17 | 1 | 8.50 | |
