Bristol, June 23 (IANS)Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu said leading from the front remains her biggest responsibility after producing a magnificent unbeaten century to guide her side to a dominant nine-wicket victory over Ireland in the Women’s T20 World Cup at the County Ground on Tuesday.

Athapaththu smashed 106 not out from just 61 deliveries, hitting 17 fours and two sixes, as Sri Lanka chased down Ireland’s total of 130/5 in only 15.3 overs. The century was the fourth T20I hundred of her career and another memorable innings at a venue where she has enjoyed considerable success over the years.

Speaking after receiving the Player of the Match award, Athapaththu admitted Bristol has become one of her favourite grounds. “Yeah, I love Bristol. I score most of the runs here, especially in England. I played my natural game and scored a hundred, but the most important thing is that we won,” Athapaththu said.

Sri Lanka entered the match needing a victory to keep their semi-final hopes alive, and the captain was pleased to deliver when her team needed her most. “We were waiting for a win. As a captain and as a leader, I always try to lead from the front. That’s what I want to do,” she added.

Athapaththu dominated the chase from the beginning, helping Sri Lanka race to 55 without loss in the powerplay before bringing up a 30-ball half-century. She later converted it into a century off just 59 deliveries as Ireland struggled to contain her aggressive strokeplay.

While her batting grabbed the headlines, the skipper was equally pleased with Sri Lanka’s performance with the ball, which restricted Ireland to 130/5 despite a fighting 59 from captain Gaby Lewis.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers struck regularly after Ireland’s top-order collapse and prevented the opposition from building significant momentum through the middle and death overs. “Actually, young Mithali bowled really well, and the rest of the bowlers, the whole bowling unit, did an amazing job. I’m really happy about the bowling unit,” Athapaththu said.

Mithali Ayodhya was one of four Sri Lankan bowlers to claim a wicket, alongside Sugandika Kumari, Nilakshika Silva, and Athapaththu herself.

The victory kept Sri Lanka’s qualification hopes alive ahead of their final group-stage fixture against Scotland. However, Athapaththu acknowledged that her team no longer has complete control over its fate following an earlier defeat to the West Indies.

“I enjoyed England this summer. We have won two games, and one more game is left. I want us to play our best game against Scotland, and let’s see what we can do next,” she said. “We can’t control those things. Unfortunately, we lost against the West Indies. Before coming here, we had beaten them a couple of times in the last few games, but unfortunately, we lost that match. So we are in a little bit of trouble now, but we keep smiling and playing our best cricket. That’s the important thing.”

With one group match remaining, Sri Lanka will now turn their attention to Scotland, hoping Athapaththu’s brilliance and another strong all-round performance can keep their Women’s T20 World Cup campaign alive.

–IANS

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