Chamari Athapaththu and Harshitha Samarawickrama Bat Sri Lanka to Historic T20I Series Victory 

Sri Lanka Women mounted their highest succesful runs chase of all time in T20 International cricket when they beat South Africa by four wickets at Buffalo Park to clinch their first-ever series triumph against the Proteas Women, in East London on Wednesday, 3 April, 2024.

This is Sri Lanka’s second T20I series win away from home in the past 12 months, their earlier success against England now doubled up after never having won a series outside of Asia before.

Sri Lanka won the toss and put South Africa in to bat, and the return from injury of skipper Laura Wolfvaardt (54 off 47 balls) paid immediate dividends, allowing the tournament hosts a chance at winning the series when she and Nadine de Klerk (44* off 25) were oustanding in an otherwise poor batting innings, the Proteas Women posting 155/6 in their allotted overs.

Sri Lanka set off with urgency in their innings, and Chamari Athapaththu’s destructive half-century, combined with Harshitha Samarawickrama’s unbeaten fifty, propelled Sri Lanka to a momentous four-wicket victory.

Athapaththu blazed 12 boundaries in her innings, including seven fours and five sixes, on her way to a 46-ball 73, while Samarawickrama remained unbeaten with 54 runs off 43 deliveries (4 fours, 1 six) during Sri Lanka’s successful chase of South Africa’s total.

Wolvaardt, for her outstanding performances throughout the series, was awarded the Player of the Series accolade after recording a total of 158 runs in two innings at an average of 79.

The three-match ICC Women’s Championship (2022-25) One-Day International series gets underway with the first encounter on Tuesday, 09 April at the Buffalo Park Stadium from 14h00.

Proteas Women XI for the Third T20I

Laura Wolvaardt (c)
Tazmin Brits 
Marizanne Kapp
Suné Luus 
Anneke Bosch
Nadine de Klerk
Eliz-mari Marx 
Karabo Meso †
Nonkululeko Mlaba
Tumi Sekhukhune
Ayabonga Khaka

Sri Lanka Women XI for the Third T20I

Vishmi Gunaratne 
Chamari Athapaththu (c)
Harshitha Samarawickrama
Kavisha Dilhari
Hasini Perera
Nilakshika Silva
Anushka Sanjeewani †
Sugandika Kumari
Inoshi Priyadharshani
Achini Kulasuriya
Udeshika Prabodhani 

Fixtures and Results – South Africa Inbound Tour vs Sri Lanka 2023/24 

T20 International Series

Wed 27 Mar, 18h00: 1st T20I – South Africa beat Sri Lanka by 79 runs
Sat 30 Mar, 14h00: 2nd T20I – South Africa lost to Sri Lanka by 7 wickets (7 balls rem.)
Wed 3 Apr, 18h00: 3rd T20I – South Africa lost Sri Lanka by 4 wickets (5 balls rem.)

50-over Warm-Up Match

Sat 6 Apr, 10h00: South Africa XI vs Sri Lanka XI (Buffalo Park, East London)

One-Day International Series – ICC Women’s Championship

Tue 9 Apr, 14h00: 1st ODI – South Africa vs Sri Lanka (Buffalo Park, East London)
Sat 13 Apr, 14h00: 2nd ODI – South Africa vs Sri Lanka (Diamond Oval, Kimberley)
Wed 17 Apr, 14h00: 3rd ODI – South Africa vs Sri Lanka (JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom)

Main Photo Caption: Sri Lanka beat South Africa in a nailbiting third T20 International at Buffalo Park in East London to win the series 2-1, after South Africa won the first encounter only to lose the second and third ties, for the third T20 series defeat to Sri Lanka in the last four outings. Photo: Cricket South Africa

Photo 2 Caption: South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt was sensational with the bat again, earning her the Player of the Series accolade. Photo: Cricket South Africa

Photo 3 Caption: Chamari Athapaththu’s and Harshitha Samarawickrama’s destructive batting propelled Sri Lanka to a historic 4-wicket victory. Photo: Cricket South Africa