India captain Harmanpreet Kaur lauded Shafali Verma for her all round performance as India beat Sri Lanka by 72 runs to claim the Women’s T20 Asia Cup trophy in Dubai,

Shafali was amongst the biggest stars of India’s campaign. In the end, she was the tournament’s top run-scorer, amassing 236 runs in five innings and claiming two wickets. She then scored another brilliant knock in the final, scoring 68 off just 39 balls to give India a good start.

Harmanpreet said she was especially happy to see Shafali taking accountability and stepping up at both ends.

“Shafali had a great tournament. It’s nice to see her taking responsibility and doing the job with bat and ball,” said Harmanpreet.

India’s victory was centred around a dazzling opening stand with Shafali and Smriti Mandhana. The duo stitched together 129 runs, which is currently the best ever opening-wicket partnership in the history of Women’s T20 Asia Cup.

On a day when most struggled to get going, their aggressive start saw India post 183 for 5 after being put in. Sri Lanka then crashed to 111 all out in the chase.

India head coach Amol Muzumdar also spoke about the opening pair being effective. He said the aggressive mindset of Shafali and elegant stroke play Mandhana brought to her game was a huge asset for the team.

Muzumdar explained that the heavy dew in Dubai influenced India’s decision to bat first. The idea was to set a challenging score on board, and then use its bowling prowess to defend it with the pitches helping the spinners.

Then came the Indian bowlers who executed that plan nicely. Getting the Sri Lankan captain Chamari Athapaththu out in the first 10 was a key component of the strategy and Deepti Sharma provided that stepping stone.

However, an odd post-match situation arose even as India ensconced in their convincing win. The trophy presentation was delayed, and only the Sri Lankans were onstage for the presentation ceremony. India players missed the event, and no player-of-the-match or player-of-the-tournament was announced.

The Indian team were not awarded the trophy itself, making for an unorthodox finish to a largely one-sided campaign. This also brings to mind scenes from the 2025 men’s Asia Cup, where India refused to lift the trophy due to a controversy surrounding its handover by ACC president Mohsin Naqvi, who is big in Pakistan cricket and government.

But for India, off the field focus was on a fourth Women T20 Asia Cup title and a lop-sided final triumph; and on it, about Shafali Verma’s inspiring tournament performance.

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