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Key Points

Sri Lanka has won the toss and chosen to bat first against New Zealand in this crucial World Cup encounter. The team has made two significant changes to their lineup, bringing in Malki Madara and Piumi Badalge for this important match. Captain Chamari Athapaththu emphasized the need for positive cricket from her batting unit. Meanwhile, New Zealand captain Sophie Devine expressed confidence in her bowling attack despite bowling first.

Key Points: Sri Lanka Bat First Against NZ in Women's World Cup Clash

  • Sri Lanka makes two changes with Malki Madara and Piumi Badalge replacing Vihanga and Prabodhani
  • New Zealand brings in Bree Illing as replacement for Lea Tahuhu
  • Chamari emphasizes playing natural game without pressure on young batting unit
  • Sophie Devine highlights Illing's matchup against Chamari as key battle
  • Both teams seek momentum after recent performances in World Cup
2 min read

Women's WC: Malki, Piumi come in as Sri Lanka opt to bat against New Zealand

Sri Lanka wins toss, elects to bat against New Zealand with Malki and Piumi in playing XI. Chamari Athapaththu aims for positive cricket approach.

"We have to play positive cricket in the middle and as a batting unit we have struggled to do that. - Chamari Athapaththu"

Colombo, Oct 14

Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to bat first against New Zealand in the 15th match of the ICC Women's World Cup, here at the R. Premadasa Stadium.

New Zealand have made one change to their lineup, with Bree Illing coming in to replace Lea Tahuhu. Sri Lanka, meanwhile, made two alterations to their side; Malki Madara and Piumi Badalge included in the playing XI, replacing Dewmi Vihanga and Udeshika Prabodhani.

Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu said, "Last two games we struggled to chase and conditions are good for batting. We have to play positive cricket in the middle and as a batting unit we have struggled to do that.

"I told them we're playing good cricket in the last 12 months against the best teams, but this is the biggest stage, so we don't want to put too much pressure on our shoulders. Just play your natural game, that's the important thing, because there are a lot of youngsters in my batting unit, I don't want to put too much pressure on their shoulders"

New Zealand captain Sophie Devine said, "We don't mind bowling first. The bowling attack was fantastic against Bangladesh. It's going to be similar here, in slightly different conditions potentially, but we're really pleased that we finally got a win on the board, we know today is a new challenge. The match-up with Illing against Chamari is obviously a key one, some of the stats suggest that she goes okay, so we're really excited to be able to bring in Bree again."

Playing XIs:

New Zealand: Sophie Devine (c), Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Isabella Gaze (wk), Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Amelia Kerr, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Georgia Plimmer, Bree Illing

Sri Lanka: Chamari Athapaththu (c), Vishmi Gunaratne, Hasini Perera, Harshitha Madavi Samarawickrama, Kavisha Dilhari, Nilakshi de Silva, Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), Piumi Badalge, Sugandika Kumari, Malki Madara, Inoka Ranaweera

- IANS

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Chamari's captaincy is really impressive - she understands her young team's pressure and is handling them well. That's what makes a good leader! 👏
S
Sarah B
Interesting to see Bree Illing coming in for New Zealand. The match-up with Chamari could be crucial. Hope it's a competitive game! Women's cricket needs more close contests.
A
Arjun K
Sri Lanka really needs to improve their batting consistency. They have talented players but collapse too often. Hope today they play with more confidence! 🤞
K
Kavya N
While I support Sri Lanka as fellow Asian team, I feel their team selection has been inconsistent. Dropping experienced players like Prabodhani might backfire. Hope the new players prove me wrong!
M
Michael C
Good to see women's cricket getting coverage! Both teams have exciting young talent. The Sri Lanka vs New Zealand matches are always entertaining. Hope it's a good contest!

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