The Lankan team beats Bangladesh to maintain their World Cup campaign ongoing
The Lankan team will confront Pakistan in their crucial final tournament encounter
Women's Cricket World Cup, Navi Mumbai
The Lankan team 202 (48.4 overs): Perera 85 (99); Shorna 3-27
The Bangladeshi team 195-9 (50 overs): Joty 77 (98); Chamari Athapaththu 4-42
The Lankan side emerge victorious by seven runs
Sri Lanka claimed four crucial dismissals in the final innings segment to seal a thrilling triumph over Bangladesh and maintain their slim aspirations of making it for the World Cup semi-finals ongoing.
Pursuing a below-par target of 203 on a favorable wicket in Navi Mumbai, Bangladesh required nine runs from the last six deliveries.
Yet, Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu claimed three important dismissals in four bowls and de Silva ran out Nahida to secure a thrilling win for Sri Lanka.
The win – Sri Lanka's first of the competition after three losses and two no-results against Australia and New Zealand – pushes them equal on four points with the Indian team and New Zealand, who confront each other on the coming Thursday.
Bangladesh, in contrast, experienced a fifth successive loss since winning their first match against the Pakistani team and have been knocked out.
Even though the Bangladeshi side made the ideal beginning, with Marufa taking a wicket with the opening bowl of the game to send back Gunaratne, they were deservedly punished for a subpar fielding display.
They gifted second chances to Hasini Perera, who was spilled multiple times, and Athapaththu.
Although Athapaththu failed to take advantage, removed lbw for 46 a single bowl after being dropped by Rabeya, Hasini Perera made the opposition suffer.
She scored a first international fifty, accumulating 85 from 99 deliveries and contributing to an crucial 74-run stand fifth-wicket collaboration with De Silva.
The Bangladeshi team, led by Shorna's 3-27, fought themselves back in the game, with Nilakshi's dismissal in the 34th over causing a Sri Lanka collapse from 174 for four to 202 total.
In reply, Sri Lanka's starting bowlers Madara and Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23 for one in a disappointing initial phase and they were later brought down to 44 for three.
Sharmin and Nigar Sultana Joty reconstructed their score, contributing an 82-run partnership for the fourth wicket collaboration before the batter left the field injured for a resolute 64 in the 36th innings segment.
It was advantage Bangladesh heading into the final two bowling phases, with just 12 more runs needed.
Nevertheless, Sugandika Dasanayaka sent back Ritu Moni and conceded only three scoring runs before Athapaththu's dramatic spell, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida, skipper Joty and Marufa all removed as Sri Lanka snatched the win at the very end.
Bangladesh fail to maintain composure - and fielding opportunities
Ultimately, it was a match of nerves. The seasoned Athapaththu, who directed away a several of team-mates as she set herself to bowl the final over, held her composure. The opposition failed to.
There will be numerous doubts about Bangladesh's batting performance. They might well have been needing 270 to 280 with the Lankan team looking comfortable on 159 for four in the 30th innings segment, but rather the required total was much lower.
However, Bangladesh lacked intent from the start, accumulating runs at less than 2.5 runs per over during the opening overs, undergoing a initial wicket loss, and eventually forcing themselves too much to achieve.
But no matter what problems there are with their batting lineup, if they had seized their chances in the fielding area, that 203-run objective would have been substantially lower.
It needed them three tries to end the 72-run stand second-wicket, with wicketkeeper Joty failing to hold a difficult catch as wicketkeeper to remove Perera on her score of 23 before Athapaththu survived from a caught and bowled opportunity against Rabeya Khan.
The batter was missed further on her score of 55 and 63 runs, the latter chance going directly to Jhilik at cover position, before eventually being given out leg before wicket by Shorna Akter as she sought to accelerate the scoring with partners getting out near her.
Later in the innings, there was additionally a failed stumping and a failed run-out, even though the second one was a little unlucky, with Rubya Haider substituting with the gloves after an injury to Joty.
Unfortunately for Bangladesh, such fielding problems are not at all a single occurrence. They've failed to catch 14 catches from a available 27 chances at this tournament and boast the lowest catching success rate (48.1 percent) of the competing sides.
They are a team who are typically moving in the right direction – they are participating in only their second 50-over World Cup ultimately – but inadequate fielding standards is a glaring problem which demands attention.
