Fresh off qualification for the Women’s T20 World Cup, Sri Lanka will host West Indies for three ODIs and three T20Is from June 15-28.
For Sri Lanka, the tour will primarily serve as preparation for the T20 Asia Cup, also to be hosted in Sri Lanka, starting July 20. It will be their second bilateral T20I series this year, following their successful tour of South Africa across March and April. They are also set to tour Ireland in August.
As for West Indies, they just concluded a month-long tour of Pakistan where they won both ODI and T20I series. As things stand, this will be their last competitive games before the World Cup in October.
The last time these two sides squared off in a bilateral series was back in 2017, where West Indies swept Sri Lanka across both T20Is and ODIs. West Indies have dominated Sri Lanka in T20Is with a head-to-head record of 18-4. In ODIs, the contest has been much closer with West Indies winning 18 and Sri Lanka 14.
This tour though has the potential to be a much more closely fought affair, with Sri Lanka entering on the back of historic series wins over England, New Zealand and South Africa over the past year.
The ODI series will be played from June 15-21 in Galle and is part of the ICC Women’s Championship, which serves as a pathway to the 2025 ODI World Cup. West Indies are currently seventh on the Women’s Championship points table and Sri Lanka eighth. Top four teams, apart from hosts India, will get a direct qualification.
The T20Is will be held in Hambantota from June 24-28. (ESPNcricinfo)
