On the first day of the competition in Sharjah, Pakistani captain Fatima Sana followed Nigar Sultana’s example and challenged Sri Lanka to chase on a sluggish pitch with low bounce. Earlier, amid the intense heat, the skipper of Bangladesh wished to score runs first to protect her squad from having to field in the direct sunlight. Though Sana’s motivations differed slightly—there was a tiny breeze and shadows on the ground now—she desired the assurance of runs on the board before anything else.
Chamari Athapaththu was more than glad to lose the toss and she would have bowled first. Sri Lanka is coming into the competition fresh off their victory in the Asia Cup and their easy passage through the qualifying rounds. With left-armer Udeshika Prabodhani as their lone seamer and a plenty of spin options, Sri Lanka seems to have the strongest danger going into the match.
Sana, who was supposed to bat at No. 6 but has lately moved up at No. 5, and Diana Baig were both included for Pakistan. All six of their other bowling options, including former captain Nida Dar, are spinners.
Sri Lanka has won the past three meetings between these two teams, despite Pakistan having a tiny advantage in their head-to-head record (10 victories to Sri Lanka’s 9).
Pakistan: 1 Muneeba Ali (wk), 2 Gull Feroza, 3 Sidra Amin, 4 Nida Dar, 5 Aliya Riaz, 6 Fatima Sana (capt), 7 Tuba Hassan, 8 Nashra Sandhu, 9 Sadia Iqbal, 10 Diana Baig, 11 Omaima Sohail
Sri Lanka: 1 Vishmi Gunaratne, 2 Chamari Athapaththu (capt), 3 Harshita Samarawickrama, 4 Kavisha Dilhari, 5 Nilakshika Silva, 6 Hasini Perera, 7 Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), 8 Sugandika Kumari, 9 Inoshi Priyadharshani, 10 Sachini Nisansala, 11 Udeskhika Prabodani
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