Chamari Athapaththu to Lead 15-Member Sri Lanka Squad in ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024

Sri Lanka's Women's Cricket team, led by Chamari Athapaththu, is gearing up for the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024 with a 15-member squad. The squad is almost unchanged from their recent historic Women's Asia Cup win, featuring veteran player Inoka Ranaweera and potential stars like Kavisha Dilhari.

Left-hand batter Chamari Athapaththu is set to lead the Sri Lanka Women's side as the Cricket Board announced a 15-member squad on Thursday for the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024. The squad is largely similar to the one that helped Sri Lanka secure their first-ever Women's Asia Cup title win in July, featuring the inclusion of Inoka Ranaweera.

Ranaweera last featured for Sri Lanka in T20Is during the Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier 2024. The experienced left-arm spinner is expected to be well-suited to the wickets in the UAE, bringing over 12 years of experience to the lineup. Over the past 18 months, Sri Lanka have enjoyed a prolific run, achieving series triumphs over England and South Africa for the first time in any format, alongside their historic Asia Cup victory and an unbeaten streak in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier 2024.

Athapaththu, Sri Lanka's highest run-scorer in the T20 format, is expected to deliver strong performances, but recent months have demonstrated that other team members are more than capable of match-winning contributions. Kavisha Dilhari, for instance, claimed nine wickets at an average of 12.33 during the Asia Cup, making her the event's second-highest wicket-taker. Among the batters, Vishmi Gunaratne and Harshitha Madhavi have proven to be valuable top-order supports to Athapaththu, both scoring centuries during the recent tour of Ireland.

The highly-anticipated ninth edition of the tournament will be held across two venues in the UAE – Dubai and Sharjah – from 3 to 20 October. Group matches will conclude by 15 October, leading to the semi-finals on 17 and 18 October. The winners of these semi-finals will compete in the grand finale on 20 October for the Women's T20 World Cup trophy.

Sri Lanka is placed in Group A of the competition alongside Australia, India, New Zealand, and Pakistan. Their campaign kicks off against Pakistan on 3 October. (ANI)

(With inputs from agencies.)