Chamari Athapaththu confirms plans to continue until next year's ODI World Cup

Chamari Athapaththu, Sri Lanka's cricket captain and star player, has confirmed that she plans to continue playing for her national team at least until next year's ODI World Cup. This announcement came after Sri Lanka's victory in the Asia Cup in Dambulla.

Athapaththu, 34, had been hinting at a possible retirement from international cricket for several months. In April, she posted on social media that a series in South Africa would be her "last duty" with the national team, but she did not elaborate further.

Speaking to the host broadcaster, Athapaththu said, "Hopefully I'll still play till the next 50-over World Cup," when asked if she would continue to play for Sri Lanka. While the dates for the World Cup have not yet been confirmed, the tournament is scheduled to be hosted by India next year.

This means Athapaththu will be available for the next two major global events - this year's T20 World Cup in Bangladesh, set for October, and the ODI World Cup next year.

Athapaththu played a crucial role in Sri Lanka's Asia Cup success. She scored 61 off 43 balls in the final, leading her team to chase down a target of 168. Throughout the tournament, she was the top run-scorer, amassing 304 runs in five innings at a strike rate of 147. The next highest scorer was India's Shafali Verma, with 200 runs at a strike rate of 141.