- Indian women's cricket team lost an ODI for the first time to Sri Lanka in 2018
- It was game day on Sunday, which was played in Colombo
- Sri Lanka's Chamari Athapaththu-led side dominated India
For the first time since 2018, the Indian women's cricket team lost an ODI to Sri Lanka, with this being their third loss at all in the almost 30 years of battles between the teams. Chamari Athapaththu's side staged a miraculous display of cricket on Sunday in Colombo, chasing down a total of 276 by three wickets and five balls—Sri Lanka's second-highest-ever ODI chase.
India, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, made 275/9 after deciding to bat first, but once more failed to make the most of a good start, having been set to reach near 290.The familiar problem of a cautious batting strategy resulted in another chance going to waste, repeating the same problems from a previous match against South Africa. In spite of a solid fielding effort, India's bowlers could not persistently shatter vital partnerships, and Sri Lanka remained in command during the pursuit.
Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal provided India with a solid beginning through their eighth 50-plus partnership in nine matches, but a recurring miscommunication brought Mandhana's stay to an end. Rawal scored 35 before missing another half-century.
Middle-order support in the form of Harleen Deol (29) and Harmanpreet Kaur (30) was not translated into large scores, with Jemimah Rodrigues yet again not able to carry her momentum on. The only aggressiveness and solidity at the batting level was demonstrated by Richa Ghosh, with her key half-century showing signs of the urgency required at a higher point of the order.
This loss, hot on the heels of a final T20 Asia Cup defeat and a near-death experience against South Africa, ought to be the wake-up call the Indian team needs—considering the 50-over World Cup is a mere five months away. Harmanpreet conceded after the game that India failed to hit their mark despite Ghosh's acceleration at the death, a reflection of what is needed on both sides for a more enterprising effort throughout.
