Chamari Atapattu

She is known for aggressive batting in the top order. In the 2013 Women's Cricket World Cup, Atapattu hit a quick fifty against England women, where the Sri Lanka women won the match. Under her captaincy, Sri Lanka women won the T20I series against Pakistan Women.[5][6]

She is also the only Sri Lankan woman cricketer to score an ODI century, doing this five times in her career. She scored her maiden ODI century on 28 April 2011 against Ireland.[7][8] She holds the record for scoring the most number of ODI centuries and fifties for Sri Lanka in women's cricket history.[9][10] She also holds the record for the highest WODI score for Sri Lanka, with 178 not out.[11] She has the highest ODI average for Sri Lanka in women's cricket.[12] She is also the only Sri Lankan woman cricketer to score an ODI hundred as well as having scored most runs in an innings at a strike rate of over 100. She was the third woman cricketer in the world to be dismissed for 99 in an ODI innings.[13]

Atapattu bowling for Sri Lanka during the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Atapattu's 178 not out is the highest Women's ODI score when batting at number three position for Sri Lanka.[14] Chamari Atapattu is the first and only Sri Lankan woman cricketer to score a century in Women's Cricket World Cup history[15][16]

Atapattu is the first Sri Lankan batswoman to pass 1,000 runs in T20Is and she is also the leading runscorer for Sri Lanka in both ODIs and T20Is.[17][18]

At 2016 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup she scored her maiden T20Is half century against South Africa. During that match, South African's had a successful 50 run partnership for the first wicket. But Atapattu came in charge break the partnership from runout and she bowled Mignon du Preez for a four-ball duck in the same over. Finally, Sri Lanka won the match by 10 runs. For the all round performance Atapattu won player of the match award.[19][20][21]She was the leading run scorer for Sri Lanka with 141 runs in four matches.[22]

At the 2017 Women's Cricket World Cup, during Sri Lanka's match against Australia, she scored the third-highest individual total in a WODI and the second-highest total in a Women's World Cup match, with 178 not out.[23] She also scored the highest percentage of runs in a completed innings in a WODI (69.26%) and the most runs in boundaries in a WODI, with 124.[23][24] It was also the record for scoring the highest individual score in an innings of a WODI in a losing cause.[25] Even in a losing cause she won player of the match award for her performance.[26]

Scoring half century against Australia during the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

In October 2018, she was named as captain of Sri Lanka's squad for the 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20 tournament in the West Indies.[27] Ahead of the tournament, she was named as one of the players to watch.[28] She was the leading run-scorer for Sri Lanka in the tournament, with 59 runs in three matches.[29]

On 9 October 2019 third ODI match against Australia Atapattu scored her fifth ODI century.[30] On 29 September 2019, in the first WT20I match against Australia, Atapattu scored her first century in WT20I cricket. She scored 113 runs from 66 balls. Athapaththu went from 51 to 113 in merely 22 deliveries, as she hit 12 fours and six sixes at a strike rate of 171.21 [31]during the innings against Australia but Sri Lanka lost the match.[32][33][34][35]

In January 2020, she was named as the captain of Sri Lanka's squad for the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Australia.[36] During practice match against England Atapattu scored unbeaten 78 runs and took three wickets and Sri Lanka won the match. [37] In the first WT20 match against New Zealand She scored 41 runs and took one wicket but Sri Lanka lost the match.[38] Next match against Australia she scored her second T20I half century.[39] She was the leading run-scorer for Sri Lanka in the tournament, with 154 runs in four matches including one half century.[40][41]

Atapattu is the first Sri Lankan to play in the Women's BBL franchise.[44] She was signed by Melbourne Renegades for the third edition of the WBBL. In her 16 matches for Melbourne Renegades she has scored 196 runs with a high score of 42 and best bowling figures of 2-6. Before WBBL, her an unbeaten 178 against Australia in Bristol, helped her to become the first Sri Lankan woman to sign a contract with a franchise-based T20 league. She represented Yorkshire Diamonds and Loughborough Lightning in the second edition of the Kia Super League in England in 2017. Atapattu’s stand-out season was in 2017 for Yorkshire Diamonds, when she made 135 runs in five matches.[45]

• ODI Batswoman of the year 2015–16.[46]
• T20I Batswoman of the year 2016–17.
• ODI Batswoman of the year 2016-17.
• Dialog Women's Cricketer of the Year 2016–17.[47]

• List of centuries in women's One Day International cricket

Media related to Chamari Atapattu at Wikimedia Commons

• Chamari Atapattu at ESPNcricinfo