Shafali Verma’s 79* guides India to 3-0 T20 series victory:Defeated Sri Lanka by 8 wickets in 13.2 overs; Deepti bags 150th T20 wicket

Shafali Verma’s unbeaten half-century guided India to the brink of victory against Sri Lanka in the third T20I at Thiruvananthapuram, putting the hosts in a strong position to seal an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series. Calm and composed at the top, Shafali controlled the chase with authority, ensuring India stayed firmly on course after a dominant all-round performance. Earlier in the evening, India’s bowlers laid the foundation with a disciplined display. Renuka Singh Thakur, playing her first T20I since December last year, made an immediate impact on her return. Finishing with impressive figures of 4 for 21, she tore through Sri Lanka’s top order with the new ball, swinging it sharply and shifting momentum heavily in India’s favour. Renuka received strong support from Deepti Sharma, who continued her remarkable consistency to become the joint-highest wicket-taker in women’s T20I history. The duo struck at regular intervals, never allowing Sri Lanka to settle, and restricted the visitors to a modest 112 for 7, a total that left India comfortably placed heading into the chase. Renuka Singh bags four wickets for India against Sri Lanka on 3rd T20I
At Greenfield Stadium, Sri Lanka team, who lost the toss and batted first, had a steady start. The team didn’t lose any wickets till 4 overs. Captain Chamari Athapaththu got out scoring 3 runs off 12 balls, after Harshitha Samarawickrama also returned to the pavilion, making just 2 runs. Hasini Perera got out after scoring 25 runs. After losing 4 wickets for 45 runs, Sri Lanka lost 7 wickets by 98 runs. The team could only make 112 runs in 20 overs. From India Women, fast bowler Renuka Singh took 4 wickets. While off-spinner Deepti Sharma claimed 3 wickets. Shafali Verma’s blistering 79* guides India to 3-0 T20I series victory
Chasing the target of 113 runs, India scored 26 runs in just 3 overs. Smriti Mandhana got out after scoring 1 run off 6 balls; she was LBW by Kavisha Dilhari. Jemimah Rodrigues batted till the 8th over and, along with Shafali Verma, took the team past 50. Jemimah got out after scoring 9 runs off 15 balls. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur came in at number 4. Shafali scored a fifty in front of her. Together, they led the team to victory in just 13.2 overs. Shafali remained not out on 79 and Harman on 21 runs. Both wickets for Sri Lanka were taken by Kavisha Dilhari. Malsha Shehani, Malki Madara, Nimasha Meepage and Inoka Ranaweera could not take any wickets. Fourth match on December 28 in Thiruvananthapuram
India had won the first match by 8 wickets and the second match by 7 wickets. Now by winning the third match, the home team has also taken an unbeatable lead in the 5-match series. The fourth match will be on December 28 and the fifth match will be on December 30. Both matches will be played in Thiruvananthapuram.