Match Details
Tournament: ICC Women’s World Cup 2025
Match: 15th Match (Day/Night)
Date: Tuesday, October 14, 2025
Time: 2:30 PM local time / 9:00 AM UTC
Venue: R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Toss: Not confirmed yet
Weather: Rain is possible during the match
What’s Happening: Both Teams Need a Win
This match at R. Premadasa Stadium is really important for both teams. Sri Lanka’s World Cup campaign is in trouble—they have only one point from a rained-out game against Australia. They lost to India and England, so the home team is under huge pressure.
New Zealand haven’t had an easy tournament either. They lost badly to Australia and South Africa but finally won against Bangladesh. If they lose today, their chances of reaching the semi-finals will be in danger.
New Zealand have always been stronger in this rivalry. They’ve won 13 out of 15 matches against Sri Lanka. But Sri Lanka surprised everyone by winning twice when New Zealand visited in 2023. This proves Sri Lanka can win when they play at home.
Confirmed Squads (Playing XI to be announced at toss)
Sri Lanka Women – 15-Player Squad
- Chamari Athapaththu (Captain) – Batting allrounder
- Anushka Sanjeewani (Vice-Captain) – Wicketkeeper batter
- Kavisha Dilhari – Batting allrounder
- Imesha Dulani – Batter
- Vishmi Gunaratne – Batter
- Achini Kulasuriya – Bowler
- Sugandika Kumari – Bowler
- Malki Madara – Bowler
- Hasini Perera – Middle-order batter
- Piumi Wathsala – Batting allrounder
- Udeshika Prabodhani – Bowler
- Inoka Ranaweera – Bowler
- Harshitha Samarawickrama – Top-order batter
- Nilakshika Silva – Middle-order batter
- Dewmi Vihanga – Bowling allrounder
Likely Playing XI: Chamari Athapaththu (c), Harshitha Samarawickrama, Hasini Perera, Vishmi Gunaratne, Kavisha Dilhari, Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), Sugandika Kumari, Inoka Ranaweera, Achini Kulasuriya, Udeshika Prabodhani, Nilakshika Silva
New Zealand Women – 15-Player Squad
- Sophie Devine (Captain) – Batting allrounder
- Suzie Bates – Allrounder
- Eden Carson – Bowler
- Isabella Gaze – Wicketkeeper batter
- Maddy Green – Middle-order batter
- Brooke Halliday – Allrounder
- Bree Illing – Bowler
- Polly Inglis – Wicketkeeper batter
- Bella James – Top-order batter
- Amelia Kerr – Allrounder
- Jess Kerr – Bowler
- Rosemary Mair – Bowler
- Georgia Plimmer – Middle-order batter
- Hannah Rowe – Bowler
- Lea Tahuhu – Bowler
Likely Playing XI: Suzie Bates, Georgia Plimmer, Amelia Kerr, Sophie Devine (c), Brooke Halliday, Maddy Green, Isabella Gaze (wk), Jess Kerr, Lea Tahuhu, Rosemary Mair, Eden Carson
Note: Final playing XIs will be confirmed at the toss.
Players to Watch
| Role | Player | Team | Why Watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Batter | Chamari Athapaththu | Sri Lanka | Team captain who can score big runs and win matches |
| Batter | Amelia Kerr | New Zealand | Needs a big score; scored 108 runs in Colombo back in 2023 |
| Batter | Sophie Devine | New Zealand | New Zealand captain and powerful hitter |
| Batter | Hasini Perera | Sri Lanka | Scored the most runs for Sri Lanka against England; needs another good score |
| Bowler | Inoka Ranaweera | Sri Lanka | Best Sri Lankan bowler with 7 wickets at just 11.29 runs each |
| Bowler | Lea Tahuhu | New Zealand | Fast bowler who can trouble batters at RPS Stadium |
| Bowler | Eden Carson | New Zealand | Spin bowler who will be important on the turning Colombo pitch |
Pitch and Weather Report
The R. Premadasa Stadium pitch is usually balanced but gets slower as the game goes on. Spinners usually do well in Colombo, and both teams have good spin bowlers. The pitch will help spin bowlers from the start, making the middle overs very important.
Rain might interrupt the game. Sri Lanka already had one match washed out this tournament. The weather forecast shows possible showers, so both teams need to be ready for a shorter game.
Key Stats & Facts
- Head-to-Head: New Zealand have won 13 matches, Sri Lanka have won 2
- Recent Games: New Zealand beat Sri Lanka twice earlier this year by big margins
- Home Games: Sri Lanka’s best chance is at home where their spinners do well
- Amelia Kerr Stats: Bowls great in Asia (24.62 average) but doesn’t score as many runs as usual
- Inoka Ranaweera: The best Sri Lankan bowler in the tournament so far
What to Expect
This match could go either way. New Zealand are favorites because they’ve beaten Sri Lanka many times before and just won their last game. But Sri Lanka are playing at home and really need to win—this makes them dangerous.
The important battle will be between Sri Lanka’s spin bowlers (especially Inoka Ranaweera) and New Zealand’s middle-order batters. If Amelia Kerr and Sophie Devine score big, New Zealand should win easily. But if Sri Lanka can stop them and Chamari Athapaththu plays well, they can pull off an upset.
Our Prediction: New Zealand should win, but it will be close. Sri Lanka will fight hard. The team that handles pressure better in the middle overs will probably win.