Inoka Ranaweera (Cricketer)

Some lesser Known Facts About Inoka Ranaweera

• Inoka Ranaweera is a Sri Lankan cricketer and a former One Day International (ODI) captain of the women’s national team.

• She hails from a small coastal town in Sri Lanka.

  

• Inoka grew up in a family that was not deeply involved in any professional sports; however, they supported her talent and passion for the game.

• Since childhood, Inoka excelled in both academics and sports. In an interview, Ranaweera mentioned that the local government school where she studied provided her with the platform to showcase her talent.

• Ranaweera’s professional domestic cricket career started in 2003, when she played her debut match for the Galle district. Her consistent performance at the domestic level caught the attention of national selectors.

• On 17 May 2010, she made her international debut in a T20 match against the West Indies team. With her unique left-arm spin bowling style, she quickly made her name in international women’s cricket.

• In April 2012, Inoka made her ODI debut against India.

• In November 2015, during an ODI against New Zealand, she achieved a milestone by taking three wickets in the last three balls of the innings, and became the first Sri Lankan woman to take an ODI hat-trick.

• Inoka Ranaweera’s best years as a Sri Lankan bowler came in 2015, 2016, and 2017. She grabbed a total of 43 wickets in those three years.

• In October 2021, Inoka was named in Sri Lanka’s team for the 2021 Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe.

• In January 2022, for the 2022 Commonwealth Games Cricket Qualifier tournament in Malaysia, she was selected to represent Sri Lanka’s team.

• In July 2022, at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, she was named to represent Sri Lanka’s team for the cricket tournament

• She was named in the Sri Lanka squad for the 2024 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.

• Recently, during the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, she gave a standout performance against Team India. In the game, she took four wickets, including a remarkable spell, where she dismissed top scorer Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Harleen Deol in the same over.

  

• After achieving this milestone, she became the second-oldest cricketer to bag a four-wicket haul in women’s ODIs and the oldest at the Women’s World Cup. West Indies’ Pamela Lavine is still the oldest.

• Along with playing internationally, Inoka also plays for the Sri Lanka Navy Sports Club. Notably, in the 2025 SLC Major Women’s 50-over tournament, she was the highest wicket taker, in which she took 23 wickets in 8 matches and was named as Bowler of the Tournament.

• During her cricket career till now, she has taken more than 100 international wickets and stands among Sri Lanka’s most successful female bowlers.

• Despite being a famous cricketer, she keeps her personal life private.