Harmanpreet Kaur’s 2025 gets better as she breaks Meg Lanning’s T20I record in India’s win over Sri Lanka

India captain Harmanpreet Kaur on Friday became the most successful captain in women’s T20I history, surpassing former Australia skipper Meg Lanning, after India registered an emphatic eight-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the third T20I at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram.

The victory took Harmanpreet’s tally to 77 wins in 130 T20Is as captain, going past Lanning’s record of 76 wins from 100 matches. The 36-year-old also holds the record for leading a team in the most women’s T20Is. England captains Heather Knight (71 wins in 96 matches) and Charlotte Edwards (68 wins in 93 matches) follow on the list.

The milestone adds to what has been a memorable year for Harmanpreet. Earlier in 2025, she became the first Indian captain to lead the women’s team to a World Cup title after India defeated South Africa in the final of the 50-over tournament in Navi Mumbai.

The match also saw Deepti Sharma achieve a historic feat. She became the first cricketer, male or female, to score 1,000 runs and take 150 wickets in T20Is. With her three-wicket haul, Deepti also rose to joint-highest wicket-taker in women’s T20Is, level with Australia’s Megan Schutt on 151 wickets.

On the field, India once again dominated Sri Lanka. Chasing a modest target of 113, the hosts reached the total in just 13.2 overs, with Shafali Verma scoring a brisk 79. Earlier, Renuka Singh Thakur starred with the ball, picking up four wickets to restrict Sri Lanka to 112 for seven.

The win gave India an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.

Speaking after the match, Harmanpreet said the series had been valuable preparation ahead of the 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup.

“We discussed after the World Cup that we need to raise our standards and be more aggressive in T20 cricket. This is the right time to push ourselves, and I’m really happy with the overall performance,” she said.

Praising the bowling unit, she added, “If you keep ticking the boxes in bowling, you give yourself more chances to win. Credit goes to our bowlers for the way they have performed throughout the series.”

India will face Sri Lanka in the fourth T20I at the same venue on Sunday, December 28.