In a historic moment the Sri Lanka women’s baseball team entered world ranking for the first time following participation in their debut international tournament as the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) released the latest rankings on Friday which saw several new entrants.
The latest WBSC Women’s Baseball World Ranking saw the inclusion of five new teams as Indonesia secured the 17th spot, Thailand ranked 19th, Sri Lanka and Malaysia both tied in the 21st place and Great Britain landing in the 25th position. These additions have expanded the ranking list to include a total of 25 women’s baseball programs, setting a new record.
This achievement places Sri Lanka at the 11th position in the overall Asian ranking. It’s worth mentioning that Japan, a six-time women’s baseball world champion, continues to hold the top position in the global rankings.
Sri Lanka’s remarkable journey into the world rankings came after their inaugural participation in a tournament held from May 21 to June 1 this year. Despite facing adversity with only 13 players due to the unavailability of 10 regular players, including the captain, who were not released by the Sri Lanka Army, the team managed to make their mark.
According to an official in the Federation, had Sri Lanka been able to field their full 18-member squad, they might have even defeated the host nation, Hong Kong and climbed higher in the rankings, potentially securing the 11th position globally and a place within the top five in Asia.
In a testament to their determination, a second-string Sri Lanka women’s baseball team, consisting of university students, participated in the 2023 Women’s Baseball Asian Cup held in Hong Kong. The 12-nation tournament featured some of the world’s top baseball countries, including Japan, Chinese Taipei, China, South Korea, Philippines, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Thailand, and host nation Hong Kong.
