Sri Lanka defeats Bangladesh to maintain their World Cup campaign ongoing

ICC Women's World Cup, Navi Mumbai

Sri Lanka 202 (48.4 overs): Perera 85 (99); Shorna 3-27

The Bangladeshi team 195-9 (50 overs): Joty 77 (98); Athapaththu 4-42

The Lankan side win by seven runs margin

Sri Lanka secured four crucial dismissals in the decisive over to achieve a nail-biting win over Bangladesh and preserve their slim hopes of qualifying for the World Cup semi-finals intact.

Pursuing a modest total of 203 on a favorable wicket in Navi Mumbai, Bangladesh required nine more runs from the remaining six bowls.

Yet, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu took three important dismissals in four balls and de Silva dismissed via run-out Nahida to bring about a thrilling success for Sri Lanka.

The victory – Sri Lanka's first of the competition after three unsuccessful matches and two abandoned games against the Australian team and the Kiwi side – elevates them tied on four points with India and the New Zealand side, who meet each other on Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, in contrast, suffered a fifth successive setback since winning their tournament opener against the Pakistani team and have been eliminated.

While the Bangladeshi side made the ideal beginning, with Marufa taking a wicket with the first delivery of the encounter to send back Vishmi Gunaratne, they were deservedly made to pay for a disappointing fielding display.

They offered second chances to Hasini Perera, who was missed multiple times, and Athapaththu.

Although the Sri Lankan skipper could not make it count, removed lbw for 46 a single bowl after being put down by Rabeya Khan, Hasini Perera forced the opposition pay.

She achieved a maiden international fifty, scoring 85 from 99 deliveries and contributing to an important 74-run fifth-wicket with Nilakshi de Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, led by Shorna's 3-27, dragged themselves back in the match, with De Silva's removal in the 34th bowling segment causing a Sri Lanka downfall from 174 with four wickets down to 202 complete.

While batting second, the Lankan team's starting bowlers Madara and Prabodhani restricted Bangladesh to 23 for one in a uninspiring opening overs and they were later diminished to 44 for three.

Sharmin and Nigar Sultana Joty rebuilt their batting effort, contributing 82 runs for the fourth wicket before the batter withdrew due to injury for a resolute 64 in the 36th over.

It was in favor of the chasing team approaching the remaining two innings segments, with merely 12 additional runs necessary.

Yet, Dasanayaka removed Ritu Moni and allowed only three runs before the captain's decisive intervention, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa all sent back as the Lankan team snatched the triumph at the death.

In the end, it was a game of nerves. The highly experienced Lankan captain, who ushered away a handful of teammates as she set herself to bowl the last over, maintained hers. Bangladesh could not.

There will be many questions about Bangladesh's batting effort. They possibly have been pursuing around 270-280 with Sri Lanka seeming at ease on 159-4 in the 30th innings segment, but in contrast the chase was much lower.

However, the batting side lacked intent from the very beginning, making runs at less than 2.5 runs each over during the powerplay, undergoing a early batting collapse, and finally forcing themselves overwhelming to accomplish.

But whatever problems there are with their batting approach, if they had seized their chances in the fielding department, that 203 total objective would have been considerably less.

It took them three efforts to end the 72-run second-wicket collaboration, with wicketkeeper Joty being unable to hold a difficult catch as wicketkeeper to dismiss Hasini Perera on 23 before the captain survived from a caught and bowled chance against Rabeya.

Perera was missed again on her score of 55 and her score of 63, the last attempt going right to Jhilik at cover, before eventually being dismissed lbw by Shorna as she attempted to up the ante with teammates getting out near her.

Later in the innings, there was also a stumping chance missed and a failed run-out, even though the run-out chance was a somewhat unlucky, with Rubya Haider standing in with the gloves after an fitness issue to the regular keeper.

Unfortunately for the team, such fielding problems are nowhere near a one-off. They've failed to catch 14 chances from a available 27 chances at this competition and boast the lowest catch efficiency (48.1 percent) of the eight teams.

They are a side who are typically heading in the correct path – they are playing in only their second ODI World Cup ultimately – but substandard fielding standards is a obvious problem which needs attention.