Big boost for Sri Lanka ahead of Women's T20 World Cup

Dubai [UAE], August 27 (ANI): Sri Lanka has received a boost ahead of this year's ICC Women's T20 World Cup with a group of their best white-ball players achieving career-best ratings on the latest ICC Women's ODI Player Rankings. The rankings rise comes on the back of an emphatic performance by Sri Lanka during the third match of their recent ODI series against Ireland, a contest that saw the island nation register a comprehensive eight-wicket triumph in Belfast, as per the ICC. 

It was inspirational skipper Chamari Athapaththu who dominated that match with a well-compiled 48 with the bat and a three-wicket haul with the ball, helping the Sri Lanka all-rounder rise all three rankings categories. Athapaththu gained six rating points to retain her position in fourth and close in on the No.1 ranked ODI batter in the world Nat Sciver-Brunt, while teammate Harshitha Samarawickrama improved fifteen places to rise to 29th spot and obtained a new career-best mark of her own following a score of 48* against Ireland. 

Veteran seamer Achini Kulasuriya also gained a new career-best rating following her three-wicket haul against Ireland, with the right-armer moving up eight places to 36th on the updated list for ODI bowlers. Athapaththu gains eight places to move to 51st on this same list, while Sri Lanka teammates (equal 86th) and Sachini Nisansala (equal 90th) are also rewarded as they climb from outside the top 100 following good efforts with the ball at the end of the Ireland tour, as per the ICC. 

The gains don't finish there for Sri Lanka's stars, with Athapaththu (up two places to seventh) and Kavisha Dilhari (up one spot to 16th) both making ground on the latest list for ODI all-rounders. While Ireland lost the final match against Sri Lanka, they did manage to claim the series 2-1 and will be buoyed by the efforts of Player of the Series Arlene Kelly. Kelly scored 49 runs and claimed five wickets across the three 50-over contests, gaining 12 places on the rankings for ODI batters to move to 86th overall as a result. (ANI)