Sri Lanka growing in confidence, but Athapaththu urges caution

Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu believes her team still have significant room for improvement despite their impressive five‑wicket victory over defending champions New Zealand at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. The win in Southampton, Sri Lanka’s first over the White Ferns in tournament history, has placed them firmly in contention for a maiden semi‑final appearance, with matches against West Indies, Scotland and Ireland still to come.

Athapaththu, however, stressed the importance of staying grounded, noting that every fixture in the competition presents major challenges. She contributed a brisk 27 during the Powerplay before Nilakshika Silva and Kaushini Nuthyangana guided the chase with an unbeaten partnership. While encouraged by the collective performance, Athapaththu highlighted areas requiring refinement, particularly in batting and middle‑overs execution. She emphasised the need to “execute the right plan at the right time” as Sri Lanka aim to build on their historic result without losing focus.