India’s women’s team clinched the Women’s Asia Cup T20 title in Dubai, defeating defending champions Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
After winning the toss, captain Harmanpreet Kaur chose to bat. India made one change, bringing in Tamil Nadu’s Kamalini in place of Pratika. Openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma set the tone with an aggressive start, including a high-scoring over bowled by Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu.
Shafali raced to a half-century off 24 balls, while Mandhana registered her 36th T20I fifty. The pair added 129 for the first wicket before Shafali fell for 68 (39 balls) and Mandhana for 59. Harmanpreet (14) and Richa (17) added useful runs, and Kamalini struck 15 off 5 balls as India finished on 183/5 in 20 overs.
In reply, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 111 in 20 overs. Deepti removed Athapaththu for 36 and later dismissed Vishmi for 20, while Sreesarani led the attack with four wickets and Deepti claimed three. With the win, India secured the Asia Cup title for the eighth time.
