Solid performances with ball and bat set Sri Lanka Women up for a six-wicket win over the West Indies Women in Hambantota to open their three-match ODI series on Saturday.
West Indies, after losing the toss, made a strong start, getting to 75 for 1 courtesy a 68-run second-wicket stand between captain Hayley Matthews and vice-captain Shemaine Campbelle.
They lost momentum after left-arm spinner Sugandika Kumari broke that partnership in the 19th over, losing their last eight wickets for 120 runs.
Matthews (38) and Stafanie Taylor (33) were the only Windies batters to get past 30, as the spinners, led by Kumari and Dilhari, chipped away.
The tourists were eventually restricted to 195 off 47.1 overs.
Kumari led the way with 3-30 from nine overs while Kavisha Dilhari took 3-41 from 9.1 overs.
Sri Lanka's top five then managed the chase perfectly, with four of them getting past 35.
Captain Chamari Athapaththu (38) and Vishmi Gunaratne (40) got them off to a solid start, putting on 88 in 13.2 overs, before a brief stumble, losing three wickets for 13 runs, with two of them falling to the medium-pace of Aaliyah Alleyne.
Harshitha Samarawickrama (44*) and Hasini Perera (43), however, ensured there wouldn't be any more major hiccups, putting on 63 for the fourth wicket to all but seal victory, before Afy Fletcher picked up a consolation wicket late in the game.
Sri Lanka ended up 198-4 in just 34.1 overs.
This win broke a streak of six straight ODI defeats to the West Indies for the hosts since their last win over the regional outfit all the way back in 2015.
The second ODI is set for Monday.
Full Scores:
West Indies Women 195 off 47.1 overs (Hayley Matthews 38, Stafanie Taylor 33, Sugandika Kumari 3-30, Kavisha Dilhari 3-41)
Sri Lanka Women 198 for 4 off 34.1 overs (Harshitha Samarawickrama 44*, Hasini Perera 43, Vishmi Gunaratne 40, Chamari Athapaththu 38, Aaliyah Alleyne 2-22, Afy Fletcher 2-31)
Dottin among nominees for ICC Women’s Player of the Month for October
West Indies all-rounder Deandra Dottin has been named among the three nominees for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award for the month of October.
Dottin made her comeback for the national side at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the UAE, and was a driving force as the islanders reached their first semi-final at the event since 2018.
She was instrumental in victories over Scotland and Bangladesh, but saved her most valuable contributions for the latter stages, where she shone with the bat, ball and in the field in their group stage win over England, before producing a memorable individual display with 33 runs and four wickets in the thrilling semi-final defeat to eventual champions New Zealand.
Dottin will be going up against New Zealand’s Amelia Kerr and South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt for the award.
The nominees for the Men’s award are New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner, Pakistan’s Noman Ali and South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada.
Kevin Sinclair replaced by Junior Sinclair in Harpy Eagles Super50 squad after internal report to GCB
All-rounder Kevin Sinclair will take no further part in the Guyana Harpy Eagles CG United Super50 Cup campaign in Trinidad and Tobago. The decision made by the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) followed the submission of an internal report by the Harpy Eagles' management team that it was necessary to replace the player.
The GCB, in making the revelation, also announced that Kevin Sinclair will be replaced by Junior Sinclair in the squad at the tournament.
Though the GCB’s statement did not clarify if sub-standard performance is the reason behind Kevin Sinclair’s ejection from the squad, it pointed out that it was a “necessary squad adjustment.”
“Following an internal report from the Guyana Harpy Eagles management, it has been decided that Kevin Sinclair will no longer be participating in this year’s competition,” the statement read.
In the three matches played in the Super50 Cup, Kevin Sinclair tallied 14 runs and snared three wickets.
He made 14 from 16 balls against Windward Volcanoes and took 2-66 from 10 overs in the same match.
However, he did not bat in the rained-out contest against Combined Campuses and Colleges Marooners and was dismissed without a score against Barbados Pride and only took 1-26 from 10 overs in that same match.
The Guyana Harpy Eagles are winless after three matches.
A similar situation arose last year during the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20 tournament when organisers announced Kevin left the Guyana Amazon Warriors squad for “personal reasons.”
Kevin Sinclair’s departure opens the door for Junior Sinclair to take up a spot in the Harpy Eagles squad ahead of Tuesday’s contest against Leeward Islands Hurricanes at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.
Guyana Harpy Eagles Squad: Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Matthew Nandu, Tevin Imlach (captain), Kevlon Anderson, Kemol Savory, Junior Sinclair, Keemo Paul (vice-captain), Ronaldo Aimohamed, Veerasammy Permaul, Isai Thorne, Ashmead Nedd, Nial Smith, Sylus Tyndall, Rampertab Ramnauth.
Salt confirmed as England wicketkeeper despite Buttler return for West Indies T20Is
Phil Salt will be wicketkeeper in England’s upcoming T20I series against West Indies as white-ball captain Jos Buttler looks to improve his captaincy.
Buttler has been ruled out with a calf strain but will return to England's squad for the five-match T20I series that begins on Saturday.
Until now, Salt has kept in just 13 of his 59 England appearances across all formats but has taken up the mantle for the ongoing ODI series against West Indies.
Buttler, on the other hand, has donned the gloves in 106 of his 108 T20Is.
Salt, though, is enjoying his new role.
"It's not something I've done a lot for England recently, but I enjoy keeping. I feel like that's where I offer most to the side," Salt said, as reported by ESPN.
"We've not had a chat about anything going forward. I'm just glad to be doing it at the moment."
While Salt is not guaranteed the gloves after this series, he will find comfort in Buttler's intent to optimise his captaincy by experimenting with a role in the field.
"I was going to give up the gloves and commit to being at mid-off and see how that felt. If it will help me with my captaincy it is something I am open to," Buttler told Sky Sports in September after being ruled out of the T20 series against Australia.
England are tied 1-1 in their ODI series against the West Indies with the decider to be played on Wednesday.
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