Australia will look to build on their winning start to the tournament as they take on a competitive Sri Lanka side in Match 5 of the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.
For the game, here we present our preview and predictions.
Sri Lanka will be disappointed with the way their opening match against hosts India panned out. After reducing India to 124/6, they would have fancied their chances of restricting the Women in Blue to an easy-to-chase score, thus upsetting the established order right from game one.
Instead, a combination of underwhelming bowling and atrocious fielding saw Sri Lanka drop catches that allowed India’s lower order to reach a total that would prove too far, for the Sri Lankan batting order demonstrated once again that they rely virtually single-handedly on their talismanic skipper, Chamari Athapaththu.
Despite the loss to India, there are still a lot of positives for Sri Lanka to take from their World Cup opener. Their bowling attack, led by the veteran Udeshika Prabodhani, performed exceedingly well in the first 25 overs. Inoka Ranaweera was the pick of the Lankan bowlers with her four-wicket haul, which included three scalps in one over to break the backbone of the Indian middle order. And while their batting left a lot to be desired, the likes of Harshitha Samarawickrama and Nilakshika Silva did manage to get promising starts, something they’ll look to convert into substantial scores in the coming games.
As far as their opponents are concerned, while Australia eventually cantered along to a comprehensive 89-run victory over their trans-Tasman rivals, it was not as easy as the final scorecard suggests. It took an all-time batting performance from Ashleigh Gardner to rescue Australia from 128/5 to 326. From then on, it was business as usual, with the Aussie bowlers coming up trumps despite a fighting century from Suzie Bates.
Despite their resounding victory against the Kiwis, the defending champions will want their top order to avoid the mistakes that cost them their wickets last time out. The Sri Lankan bowling unit is another potential banana skin, and if they trip up again there’s no guarantee of another one-woman escape. In particular, Phoebe Litchfield and Ellyse Perry will try not to do anything silly and get out after promising starts yet again.
While this is set to be another tricky contest for Australia, with the co-hosts looking to punch above their weight in this tournament, it’s hard to look past the reigning champions, who are once again the overwhelming favourites to win this game. A formidable batting unit, a well-balanced bowling attack, and their unerring ability to overcome adversity make Australia likely to once again make light of their opponents.
Fantasy XI: Alyssa Healy (wk), Beth Mooney, Chamari Athapaththu, Phoebe Litchfield, Ellyse Perry (c), Ashleigh Gardner (vc), Udeshika Prabodhani, Inoka Ranaweera, Annabel Sutherland, Sophie Molineux, Kim Garth
Venue: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Winners Prediction: Australia
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