WT20 WC: Chamari Athapaththu scripts records with fourth WT20I hundred
What's the story
Sri Lanka's captain Chamari Athapaththu scored a blistering century to lead her team to a nine-wicket victory over Ireland in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup. The match was held at Bristol County Ground, where Athapaththu scored her maiden T20 World Cup hundred off just 58 balls. This win has kept Sri Lanka's hopes of qualification alive in the tournament. Here we look at her records and stats.
Match highlights
Impressive innings from Athapaththu
Athapaththu's explosive innings came after a solid opening partnership with Imesha Dulani. Chasing a paltry 131 for victory, the duo put on 98 runs for the first wicket, setting Sri Lanka on course for victory. Athapaththu headlined this stand as Dulani contributed just 20 runs before departing. The skipper further dominated a 36-run stand with Nilakshika Silva (4*) as Sri Lanka prevailed with 27 balls to spare.
Feat
Eighth batter with this record
Athapaththu returned unbeaten on 106 off 61, having hit 17 fours and a six. With this, the 36-year-old became the first Sri Lankan and eighth batter overall to hit a WT20 WC hundred, as per ESPNcricinfo. Australia's Meg Lanning, England's Heather Knight, and India's Harmanpreet Kaur are the only other players to accomplish this feat as a skipper. Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan became the first batter with a WT20 WC hundred in run chases.
Tons
Fourth hundred in the format
Athapaththu scored her fourth hundred in women's T20Is. Only UAE batter Esha Oza is ahead of the Sri Lankan with five tons. This was Athapaththu's second WT20I ton in a run chase, as her maiden one came against Australia back in 2019. England's Danni Wyatt-Hodge (2) is the only other batter with multiple WT20I hundreds in the second innings.
Career
Here are her career numbers
Athapaththu is Sri Lanka's all-time leading run-scorer in T20Is, having raced to 3,891 runs across 161 games at an average of 26.11 (SR: 111.93). The tally includes 18 50-plus scores. She is fourth in terms of overall runs in WT20Is. 850 of her runs have come in 36 WT20 WC games at an average of 24.28. Besides a ton, she has tallied three fifties. Meanwhile, Athapaththu's previous scores in this edition were 2, 27, and 4.