Bowlers, Rodrigues give India early lead

Jemimah Rodrigues' 14th T20I fifty, following a disciplined bowling show, helped India kickstart their five-match T20I series against Sri Lanka with a clinical eight-wicket victory in Visakhapatnam. Coming off the high of their 2025 ODI World Cup triumph, the hosts transitioned seamlessly to the shortest format, with a new-look bowling attack restricting the visitors to 121/6.

Chasing a target of 122, India lost Shafali Verma early for nine. Smriti Mandhana and Rodrigues stabilized the innings with a 54-run partnership. En route, Mandhana became the first Indian batter to notch up 4000 T20I runs before falling to Inoka Ranaweera.

Rodrigues then played an innings of technical precision, adding 55 runs with captain Harmanpreet Kaur. Rodrigues reached her half-century in 34 deliveries. The duo polished off the chase with two balls to spare in the 15th over.

Earlier, the Sri Lankan innings struggled for momentum. Captain Chamari Athapaththu (15) was dismissed early by Kranti Gaud, who claimed her maiden T20I wicket. Vishmi Gunaratne top-scored with 39 off 43 balls but struggled to accelerate.

Hasini Perera (20) and Harshitha Samarawickrama (21) provided stability but could not convert their starts. Harshitha's innings was interrupted by a sharp bouncer from Amanjot Kaur that struck her helmet, though she resumed after a concussion check.

Vaishnavi Sharma, on her international debut, was economical, conceding just 16 runs in four overs. Deepti Sharma applied early pressure and finished with 1/20. Kranti Gaud and Sree Charani also picked up a wicket each.

The dew made its presence felt. While Gaud executed a sharp run-out of Gunaratne, there were dropped catches by Charani and Mandhana. Despite the reprieves, Sri Lanka managed only 121, which proved insufficient.

Brief scores: Sri Lanka 121/6 in 20 overs (Vishmi Gunaratne 39; Deepti Sharma 1/20) lost to India 122/2 in 14.4 overs (Jemimah Rodrigues 69*, Smriti Mandhana 25) by 8 wickets.