Megan Schutt, Sophie Molineux, and Beth Mooney give Australia a comfortable victory in a low-scoring encounter.
Sri Lanka led by skipper Chamari Athapaththu was up against Australia led by skipper Alyssa Healy in the 5th match of the tournament at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Sri Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu won the toss and opted to bat first. Sri Lanka got off to a poor start as they lost both their openers cheaply inside the first four overs of the innings.
Kavisha Dilhari joined Harshitha Samarawickrama at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 19-run partnership for the 3rd wicket. Sophie Molineux picked up the wicket of Kavisha Dilhari to provide the 3rd breakthrough for Australia. Nilakshika Silva joined Harshitha Samarawickrama at the crease and the duo stitched another crucial 31-run partnership for the 4th wicket to take their side past the 50-run mark.
Molineux returned and picked up the wicket of Harshitha Samarawickrama to provide the 4th breakthrough for her side. Sri Lanka eventually crept through to the total of 93/7 in their quota of 20 overs, scoring just 37 runs in their last seven overs. Nilakshika Silva (29* off 40 balls), Harshitha Samarawickrama (23 off 35 balls), and Wicket-keeper batter Anushka Sanjeewani (16 off 15 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Sri Lanka.
Megan Schutt (4-1-12-3), Molineux (4-0-20-2), Ashleigh Gardner (4-1-14-1), and Georgia Wareham (4-0-21-1), were the top performers with the ball for Australia. Chasing a target of 94, Australia lost a couple of wickets early, including the wicket of their skipper Alyssa Healy, giving some hope to the Sri Lankans.
Ellyse Perry joined Beth Mooney at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 21-run partnership for the 3rd wicket to settle the nerves in the Australian dug-out. Sugandika Kumari cleaned up Ellyse Perry to provide the 3rd breakthrough for Sri Lanka. Ashleigh Gardner joined the opening batter, Beth Mooney at the crease, and the duo took their side on the cusp of victory with another crucial 43-run partnership. Inoka Ranaweera picked up the wicket of Ashleigh Gardner to provide the 4th breakthrough for her side.
Australia eventually got over the line with six wickets in hand and 34 balls to spare. Beth Mooney (43* off 38 balls), Ellyse Perry (17 off 15 balls), and Ashleigh Gardner (12 off 15 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Australia. Udeshika Prabodhani (3-0-19-1), Inoka Ranaweera (3-0-20-1), and Sugandika Kumari (2.2-0-16-1) were the top performers with the ball for Sri Lanka.
Megan Schutt was awarded the Player of the Match for her sensational spell (4-1-12-3), with the ball for her side.
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