Chamari Athapaththu is the face of Sri Lankan women’s cricket and has been a trailblazer for the Islanders.
New Delhi: Former Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga has rooted for women’s team captain Chamari Athapaththu to be picked by any of the five franchises in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024 Player Auction, which is set to take place in Mumbai on Saturday. Athapaththu remained unsold during the inaugural auction earlier this year.
Athapaththu has been the face of women’s cricket in Sri Lanka and is arguably one of the biggest attractions in this year’s auction purely because of her current form. The opening batter finished as the second-highest run-getter in the recently-concluded WBBL, scoring 552 runs in 14 matches. She also took nine wickets.
Malinga, who is currently associated with Mumbai Indians in IPL, stated he would be surprised if the teams don’t break the bank for Athapaththu. “2nd highest run scorer and PoS of #WBBL09, top run scorer of FairBreak T20 League in 2022 & 2023. Also led Sri Lanka to their first ever ODI & T20I series wins against New Zealand and England. I’d be surprised if WPL teams don’t break their bank for a player of her quality! #ChamariAthapaththu #WPLAuction,” Malinga posted on X.
🥈highest run scorer and PoS of #WBBL09
🥇run scorer of FairBreak T20 League in 2022 & 2023
Also led 🇱🇰 to their first ever ODI & T20I series wins against 🇳🇿 & 🏴I’d be surprised if WPL teams don’t break their bank for a player of her quality!#ChamariAthapaththu #WPLAuction pic.twitter.com/ZRONRmp1FD
— Lasith Malinga (@malinga_ninety9) December 8, 2023
Besides the franchise leagues globally, Athapaththu also led Sri Lanka women to a silver medal in the Asian Games 2023, losing to India in the final. In the WPL 2024 auction, Athapaththu is slotted in the Rs 30 lakh category, that is likely to increase as the teams raise their paddle for the left-handed menace.