India Women Crush Sri Lanka by 72 Runs to Clinch Record 8th Women’s Asia Cup Title
Dubai: India Women produced a commanding all-round display to thrash Sri Lanka by 72 runs and clinch a record-extending eighth Women’s Asia Cup title on Sunday.
Batting first after winning the toss, India posted 183/5. Openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma smashed a tournament-record 129-run stand. Shafali blasted 68 off 39 balls (nine fours, two sixes), reaching fifty in just 24 balls — the fastest fifty in Women’s Asia Cup history. Mandhana made a fluent 59 off 39. The pair now hold the highest partnership in a Women’s Asia Cup match and the highest in any women’s T20I tournament final.
The middle order cooled after the openers fell, but a late cameo from Bharti Fulmali (15 not out off five balls) lifted India to a challenging total.
Sri Lanka never recovered in the chase of 184. Kranti Gaud struck in the first over. Captain Chamari Athapaththu (36) and Vishmi Gunaratne offered brief resistance, but India’s spin trio took control after the powerplay.
Sree Charani returned outstanding figures of 4/20, while Deepti Sharma claimed 3/19. Sri Lanka were bowled out well short as the required rate climbed beyond 10 an over. Charani’s four-wicket haul and disciplined bowling from both ends sealed a comprehensive 72-run victory.
Shafali Verma finished as the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 236 runs at a strike rate of 171. India won every match in the campaign.
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur said the side simply matched the high standards it set for itself. “We set some really high standards and we had to match them every day. I’m pretty happy with the way we all came up together,” she said, praising the openers and the team’s overall consistency.
Head coach Amol Muzumdar highlighted the strong start with the bat and the three quality spinners who exploited a turning Dubai pitch.
The victory extends India’s dominance in the Women’s Asia Cup and adds another chapter to the Mandhana-Verma opening partnership, which has now aggregated nearly 3,900 runs together in women’s T20Is.
Team India have once again set the benchmark in Asian women’s cricket.
