By Srian Obeyesekere

South Africa made light of Sri Lanka by a 10 wicket triumph in a DLS rain reduced 20 over game to frog leap England to an impregnable 2nd place of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 points table yesterday at Colombo’s segment of the extravaganza at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.
The win put paid to Sri Lanka’s outside hopes of making the semi finals in a final phase unfinished 125 stand off 14.5 overs by South African openers skipper Laura Woolvaardt, a symbolic lead from the front Player of the Match 60 off 47 balls with 8 boundaries, and Tazmin Brits 55 off 42 with 2 sixes and like number of boundaries in breezing past Sri Lanka’s 105 for 7 off the revised 20 overs.

The jarring rains did hamper the Lankan bowlers in so much as gripping the ball, an advantage maximised by the South African openers following a poor batting display by the Lankan batters with the only substantial score of 34 coming from the bat of opener Vishmy Gunaratne who was put out by an injury before coming back as Sri Lanka lost Hasini Perera 4, Skipper Chamari Atapaththu 11, Kavishka Dilhari 14, Harshitha Samarawickrama 13, Nilakshika Silva 18, and Anushka Sanjeewani 1 in that order with Gunaratne seventh out with the score 105 for 7 before the spin of Nonkululeko Mlaba 3 for 30, and pacer Masabata Klaas 2 for 18 with Nadine de Klerk 1 for 23.

South Africa 121 for 0 (Wolvaardt 60, Brits 55) beat Sri Lanka 105 for 7 (Gunaratne 34, Mlaba 3-30, Klaas 2-18) by ten wickets (DLS method) 20-overs-a-side.