Velocity win despite Chamari’s blitz

Sri Lanka Women’s national team captain Chamari Atapattu smashed 44 off 39 balls for Supernovas in the first match of the Women’s T20 Challenge against Velocity at Sharjah yesterday. 

It was the highest individual contribution for Supernovas, who scored 126 for 8 in 20 overs, which ultimately proved insufficient to defend as Velocity chased down the target with a ball left in the innings. 

Team captain Harmenpreet Kaur (31) and Shashikala Siriwardene (18) were the next highest scorers for Supernovas.   

Atapattu put on two productive partnerships – a 30-run opening wicket partnership with Priya Punia, and another for 47 for the third wicket with Kaur – striking two fours and two sixes. 

She was dismissed at the start of the 13th over, caught by Veda Krishnamurthy off the bowling of Jahanara Alam. 
Siriwardene, Sri Lanka’s only other representative at the T20 Challenge, scored a solitary boundary in her 21-ball knock. 

Left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht took 3 for 22 for Velocity, while Alam and New Zealander Leigh Kasperek took two wickets each. 
In response, Velocity reached 65 for 4 in 13 overs, before Sushma Verma and Sune Luus led their team’s late charge to victory. 

Sushma Verma scored 34 off 33, with two sixes, and put on 51 runs with Luus to take Velocity to within 11 runs of victory. 

With nine needed off the last over, Luus struck boundaries on the first and fifth balls, taking her team over the line. 
At the top of the chase, Velocity lost English opener Danni Wyatt in the first over with the score on zero, and Shafali Verman in the third over with the score on 17. 

Siriwardene then accounted for the wicket of Velocity captain Mithali Raj for 7 in the ninth over before Radha Yadav broke a 27-run partnership for the fourth wicket.