Women’s Asia Cup review: Chamari’s bravehearts march to maiden title win, India handed reality check

Host Sri Lanka handed India a reality check with an eight-wicket victory in the final of the Women’s Asia Cup, clinching its maiden title in the process.

Chamari Athapaththu led from the front, guiding Sri Lanka to its maiden Asia Cup title. She was also adjudged Player of the Tournament for her allround contributions. | Photo Credit: Asian Cricket Council

Sunday, July 28. Two India vs Sri Lanka fixtures were pencilled into the day: one between the senior men’s teams — the second fixture of a three-match bilateral series, and the other between the senior women’s sides in the final of the Women’s Asia Cup. The bilateral fixture in Kandy took the 7 pm prime time slot for the benefit of television audiences in the country while crowds in Dambulla had an early afternoon fixture between two of the strongest sides in the continent.

Prime time or otherwise, the Women’s Asia Cup put on a show for the hordes of fans at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium and for the scores following on broadcast, with Sri Lanka pulling off an upset for the ages, beating India by eight wickets to lift its maiden Asia Cup title. The long penance for the Asian crown had borne fruit on the nation’s sixth attempt.

For Chamari Athapaththu and Co., this win capped an incredible turn of fortune over the last couple of years that has seen the side match historically superior opponents toe-to-toe. But the biggest problem for this team was never its opponents; it was its own inexperience and tendency to retreat into a shell when things got rough.

Chamari, the experienced leader of the pack, is one of the last remaining members of a generation of experienced players who have slowly made their way out of the active playing system. Those who’ve barely seen a few seasons were left in her care to try and carve out a framework that could work beyond her time on the field. It might sound reductive to say that Sri Lanka’s chances began and ended at Chamari’s feet, but it is a hard truth. For a long time, she carried this team on her back. Sri Lankan wins were automatic consequences of a good day in the office for the all-rounder.

Sri Lanka players celebrates with series trophy | Photo Credit: Asian Cricket Council

Sri Lanka was tested only twice in this tournament — once in the semifinal against Pakistan and then against India in the trophy match. A Lankan chase was underway in both instances. Chamari set up the game in her team’s favour but fell before the job was done and was forced to pace around the sidelines praying to every god she knew for her girls to see the win through. Anushka Sanjeewani and Achini Kulasuriya held their nerves to scrape through in the penultimate clash, but what unfolded in the final took that spirit a few notches higher. Sri Lanka managed to unlock a new gear, moving past survival to dominance.

When Chamari fell in the final, 72 runs were still needed off 48 balls. It was all starting to look all too familiar for the captain as she trudged up and down the dugout, dreading any deja vu she might feel. But this is Chamari’s Lanka. She has taught her kids well. Harshita Samarawickrama and Kavisha Dilhari did not bow down to an Indian side waiting to strike again. They took on Pooja Vastrakar and Radha Yadav with disdain, a raucous crowd perfectly scoring their exploits with rising decibel levels. A last-over finish wasn’t even needed. The pair saw Lanka through with eight balls to spare. Kavisha’s war cry, Harshita inconsolable as she sank to the ground before being hounded by her teammates, players racing onto the field, a stoic Chamari wiping tears by the boundary — the scenes were incredible.

The last year or so has been incredible for the Sri Lankan side. It won the qualifier for the T20 World Cup. The side beat Bangladesh, England, and South Africa (the last two were away fixtures) in T20Is. They beat New Zealand and West Indies in the ODIs. All of these brought with it an expanding pool of contributors to Sri Lankan victories, just what Chamari wanted all along.

The Asia Cup, Chamari’s first major international title as skipper, will only strengthen the faith ahead of the World Cup in Bangladesh.

In a parallel universe, the script for this final had an India win. It was only logical. India was head and shoulders above the rest in quality, experience, and form. In a tournament where par scores of 130-140 would often be discussed, India was the side eyeing the 190s.

But when has sport ever been purely about logic? It needs heart. Sri Lanka’s bowlers offered India its first proper challenge, asking probing questions to India’s in-form batters. Sri Lanka’s batters were easily the hardest India faced in the tournament. And when things got the slightest bit more uncomfortable, India panicked.

Fielding was a problem for Harmanpreet and co. throughout this tournament, and it came to bite India yet again in the final. Without regular successes, the bowlers strayed in their line and length. Harmanpreet herself was frantic in trying out as many options as possible to unsettle the Lankans, all in vain.

One can argue that a win here would have closed out India’s preparations for the World Cup perfectly, but one must agree that this loss will do more good than otherwise. It gave India a reality check — that form alone cannot win you games. Taking opponents lightly rarely pays off, and the biggest test of tactical acumen happens when you have to ditch your binder of plans and think on the go.

India’s campaign was far from flawless. It began the calendar year with Richa Ghosh — a potent finisher — earmarked for the no. 3 role in the batting order. A technically gifted and explosive batter, Richa adapted. The Women’s Premier League’s second edition brought D. Hemalatha into the equation, and she took to the job well in Bangladesh but has since struggled. Jemimah Rodrigues, who has enjoyed an on-and-off relationship with the position, now finds herself firmly in no. 5. Yastika Bhatia is on the mend after an injury. So who is India’s no. 3 for the World Cup? That there is no concrete answer yet is a bit worrying for India.

All isn’t well in the spin department either. Radha Yadav, who marked her comeback into the Indian side with solid performances, struggled to dominate in Sri Lanka. She even conceded the most runs (47) by a bowler in a women’s T20 Asia Cup game in the final. Tanuja Kanwer, who was brought in for the injured Shreyanka Patil, showed promise but was taken to the cleaners by Chamari’s Lanka. Surprisingly, Asha Sobhana Joy — the leg spinner who enjoyed good returns in Bangladesh — wasn’t even given a look-in during this tournament.

It’s not all gloom and doom. India’s batting throughout the tournament will inspire a lot of confidence. A total of 200, fifties aplenty for Smriti Mandhana, a fluent Shafali Verma alongside her, and runs from the middle order — all bodes well for India as it gears up to take on similarly on-song sides with the bat in the World Cup. If there’s any department on life support in the Indian camp, it would be its fielding, and that needs resuscitation on priority.

Sri Lanka’s resurgence aside, the report card was not encouraging for Asian cricket as a whole. The tournament, although expanded, continued to be lopsided in quality for no fault of the participating nations. With the ICC toying with expanding the World Cups too, increased exposure for nations like Nepal, Thailand, UAE, and Malaysia against stronger, more established sides is the need of the hour to strengthen the health of the game in the continent.