Sri Lanka Women and Ireland Women meet in the afternoon heat of Bristol, with a toss that could matter on a dry surface. Sri Lanka are led by Chamari Athapaththu, and they have a batting group built around Hasini Perera, Vishmi Gunaratne, Harshitha Samarawickrama and Kavisha Dilhari. If they bat first and build a platform, that depth gives them an advantage.
Spin should play a major role. A hard, dry pitch can offer grip, and Sri Lanka’s slower bowlers are likely to be central in the middle overs. Kawya Kavindi, Sugandika Kumari and Nimasha Meepage are among the options in the likely XI.
Ireland, captained by Gaby Lewis, have tended to lean on their top order. Amy Hunter, Orla Prendergast and Lewis supply most of the runs, and early wickets could leave the middle order short of options. Arlene Kelly, Cara Murray and Aimee Maguire form the bowling core.
The pitch may begin well for strokeplay and slow later, so scoring in the powerplay will be important. Our preview expects Sri Lanka to cope better with the conditions and take the win.
