Australia Women Under-19’s ongoing tour of Sri Lanka for a five-match T20 series and a one-off One-Day game, in the penultimate match witnessed the hosts seal the series in style as they went 4-0 up with a 9-run win under the DLS method at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium.
Persistent rain played spoilsport, with the game eventually getting shortened to 9 overs per side, but that did not stop the hosts from putting on yet another strong performance at home soil. Skipper Manudi Nanayakkara won the toss and chose to bat first, and her side got off to a flying start, all thanks to the ever-consistent Sanjana Kavindi, who is the current leading run-scorer of the series.
The 16-year-old struck 25 off just 16 balls, including five boundaries. At the other end, Vimoksha Balasuriya struggled to get going, making 11 from 12 balls, but captain Nanayakkara herself took the onus to give the innings a spark with a quick cameo of 17 runs from only 8 deliveries, which included two fours and a six.
The middle order batters could not capitalise on the sensational start, as Shashini Gimhani, Rashmika Sewwandi, and Limansa Thilakarathna could only add 8, 0, and 8 runs respectively. In 9 overs, Sri Lanka posted 83 for 6 at a brisk rate of 9.22 per over. For Australia, right-arm medium pacer Lucy Finn was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with 2 wickets for 16 runs from her quota of two overs.
In reply, Australia Under-19 never really found their footing in the chase. Skipper Lucy Finn was dismissed for just 3 runs, and opener Eva Baird was run out by Chamodi Praboda in the second over, leaving the visitors under pressure early on.
None of the top three batters managed to reach double figures, which made things even tougher for the visitors. However, Indira Panelli and Shiloh Julien tried to steady the innings with a fighting stand of 31 runs, giving their side a glimmer of hope. Just as the partnership was building, rain intervened once again and brought the game to a halt.
At that stage, Australia were 55 for 4 in 6.3 overs, still behind on the DLS calculations. With no further play possible, Sri Lanka Under-19 were declared winners by 9 runs, sealing the series 4-0 with one match still to go. The fifth and final T20 will be played on September 30.
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