The history of the Sri Lankan women’s T20 sides has been challenging since the start of the Women’s T20 World Cup. The first edition took place in 2009 in England, and since then, the T20 World Cup has had nine editions played, with the most recent in South Africa in 2023. Let’s go through their journey in each edition of the T20 World Cup and explore the performances of the Sri Lanka women’s team.
2009 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
England hosted the first-ever Women’s T20 World Cup in 2009. Chamari Polgampala led the Islanders in this World Cup. Sri Lanka was part of Group B in the eight-team tournament, alongside England, India, and Pakistan. Sri Lanka faced Pakistan in their opening match, resulting in a win by four wickets while chasing 105. This was their only win in the World Cup, as they lost their matches against England and India. Finishing third in the group, they failed to qualify for the knockouts.
2010 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
The second edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup was held in the Caribbean. The Sri Lankan side was led by Chamani Seneviratna and was part of Group B, which included India, New Zealand, and Pakistan. They faced Pakistan in their opening match, securing a one run win in a low-scoring thriller, defending their target of 109. They suffered a 47-run defeat against New Zealand, followed by a 71-run loss against India. They finished third in their group, failing to make it to the knockouts for the second consecutive edition.
2012 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
Sri Lanka hosted the 2012 Women’s T20 World Cup, the third edition. The Islanders were part of Group B alongside West Indies, New Zealand, and South Africa. The Lankan batter Shashikala Siriwardene led the side during the 2012 edition. Sri Lanka had a challenging start straightaway, losing their opener to South Africa by six wickets. In a rain-affected second match, they secured a win against the Windies to keep their semi-final hopes alive, but it all came crashing down when they lost their crucial match against New Zealand by 8 wickets, finishing in the group stage for the third consecutive time.
2014 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
Bangladesh hosted the fourth edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup. Sri Lanka secured a spot in this edition after triumphing in the 2013 T20 World Cup qualifiers. The ten teams were divided into two groups, with Sri Lanka being part of Group B with England, West Indies, India, and the host Bangladesh. They won their first match against India by 22 runs, defending a total of 129. Unfortunately, the Islanders lost their next three matches, finishing fourth in the group. They qualified for the 2016 T20 World Cup qualifiers after finishing fourth but lost their matches against New Zealand and Pakistan in the qualification and classic playoffs, respectively.
2016 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
India hosted the fifth edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup. Sri Lanka was part of Group A alongside New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, and Ireland. Shashikala Siriwardene led the Lankan side during the 2016 World Cup. Although they lost their opening match against New Zealand, they made a comeback by securing a victory against Ireland by 14 runs but went on to lose their match against Australia. Despite securing a win against South Africa, they fell short of securing a spot in the knockouts, finishing third in the group stages.
2018 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
West Indies hosted the T20 World Cup for the second time after 2010. The Sri Lankan all-rounder Chamari Athapaththu led the Islanders during that edition. Sri Lanka’s opening match against England was washed out. Their only win in the tournament was against Bangladesh, losing the other two matches against South Africa and West Indies. They finished fourth in the group stage, missing out on the semi-final.
2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
For the first time, Australia hosted the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Chamari Athapaththu led the side for the second consecutive edition. They suffered three losses in their first three matches before securing a win in their last league game against Bangladesh. It was the seventh consecutive season that the Islanders were unable to make it to the knockout stages.
2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
The eighth edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup was hosted by South Africa. Chamari Athapaththu led the Sri Lanka side for the third consecutive season. Sri Lanka was part of Group 1 alongside the hosts South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Bangladesh. Sri Lanka and South Africa played the opening match of the 2023 T20 World Cup, with the Islanders upsetting the host side by defending a target of 130 runs, winning by three runs. They won their second match against Bangladesh and were on the verge of qualifying for the first time ever, but they suffered heavy losses in the next two matches against Australia and New Zealand. These losses affected their net run rate heavily, and they finished fourth yet again, failing to make it to the knockouts.
