© GettyDulani became only the second woman from her country to hit a century in the shortest format.
© GettyImesha Dulani's unbeaten 101 off 63 balls made her only the second Sri Lankan woman to hit a T20I century, and powered Sri Lanka to a six-wicket win over Pakistan in the opening T20I in Dambulla.
Sri Lanka pulled things back through Kavisha Dilhari, whose well-timed 2 for 36 halted Pakistan's momentum.
Sri Lanka made an equally aggressive start in the chase as Dulani and Chamari Athapaththu put on 78 for the first wicket.
After Nashra Sandhu dismissed Athapaththu, Sri Lanka lost Vishmi Gunaratne and Harshitha Samarawickrama cheaply.
Dulani became only the second woman from her country to hit a century in the shortest format. © Getty
Dulani became only the second woman from her country to hit a century in the shortest format. © Getty
Imesha Dulani's unbeaten 101 off 63 balls made her only the second Sri Lankan woman to hit a T20I century, and powered Sri Lanka to a six-wicket win over Pakistan in the opening T20I in Dambulla. Chasing a challenging target of 177, Dulani carried her bat as the hosts reached the target with an over to spare.
Asked to bat first, Pakistan made a flying start through openers Muneeba Ali and Shawaal Zulfiqar, who put on 66 for the opening wicket, including 64 runs in the Powerplay. Ali struck 42 off 24 balls, hitting nine fours before being run out against the run of play. Zulfiqar continued the charge, bringing up a 41-ball 63 with 10 fours and a six, before adding 61 runs for the second wicket with Eman Naseer.
Sri Lanka pulled things back through Kavisha Dilhari, whose well-timed 2 for 36 halted Pakistan's momentum. The visitors managed just 49 runs in the final five overs while losing wickets at regular intervals, finishing on 176/7.
Sri Lanka made an equally aggressive start in the chase as Dulani and Chamari Athapaththu put on 78 for the first wicket. Dulani dominated the Powerplay, taking particular advantage of Humna Bilal's bowling, and finished with 17 fours and a six in a superb knock. Athapaththu provided solid support with a brisk 39 off 22 balls.
After Nashra Sandhu dismissed Athapaththu, Sri Lanka lost Vishmi Gunaratne and Harshitha Samarawickrama cheaply. But Dulani found another reliable partner in Dilhari, who made 32 off 20 as the pair added 52 runs in 36 balls to put Sri Lanka within touching distance of victory. Nilakshika Silva then chipped in with a quick 9 off 4 before Dulani sealed it with the winning runs.
