Sri Lanka defeats the Bangladeshi side to keep their tournament hopes ongoing

ICC Women's World Cup, 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

Sri Lanka win by seven runs margin

Sri Lanka secured four wickets in the final over to complete a heart-stopping triumph over their opponents and maintain their faint hopes of qualifying for the tournament knockout stage intact.

Pursuing a attainable target of 203 on a batting-friendly pitch in Navi Mumbai, the Bangladeshi team wanted nine additional runs from the remaining six deliveries.

Yet, Lankan skipper Athapaththu claimed three important dismissals in four bowls and Nilakshi de Silva ran out Nahida to secure a dramatic win for the Lankan team.

The victory – Sri Lanka's first of the competition after three defeats and two abandoned games against the Australian team and the Kiwi side – pushes them level on four tournament points with India and New Zealand, who confront each other on the coming Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, on the other hand, suffered a fifth straight defeat since winning their first match against Pakistan and have been eliminated.

Although Bangladesh made the ideal beginning, with Marufa Akter striking with the first delivery of the game to dismiss Gunaratne, they were rightfully made to pay for a subpar fielding performance.

They provided lifelines to Perera, who was spilled three times, and Athapaththu.

Even though Athapaththu failed to take advantage, removed lbw for 46 one ball after being dropped by Rabeya, Perera made the opposition pay.

She achieved a maiden international 50-run score, making 85 from 99 bowls and contributing to an crucial 74-run partnership fifth-wicket association with De Silva.

Bangladesh, led by Shorna's 3-27, dragged themselves back into the game, with Nilakshi's removal in the 34th innings segment causing a Sri Lanka batting collapse from 174 with four wickets down to 202 complete.

In reply, Sri Lanka's initial pace attack Malki Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23 for one in a uninspiring initial phase and they were afterwards reduced to 44-3.

Sharmin and Joty rebuilt their innings, contributing 82 for the fourth wicket before Sharmin withdrew due to injury for a stubborn 64 in the 36th bowling phase.

It was leaning toward the chasing team entering the last two overs, with merely 12 additional runs necessary.

Yet, Sugandika Dasanayaka removed Ritu and allowed merely three scoring runs before Athapaththu's decisive intervention, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa all sent back as Sri Lanka grabbed the triumph at the final moment.

In the end, it was a contest of composure. The very experienced Lankan captain, who directed away a handful of fellow players as she prepared to bowl the decisive over, kept her composure. Bangladesh did not.

There will be plenty of questions about Bangladesh's batting display. They could easily have been pursuing around 270-280 with the Lankan team appearing at ease on 159 with four wickets down in the 30th over, but rather the chase was considerably smaller.

Yet, the batting side displayed insufficient aggression from ball one, making runs at below 2.5 runs per over during the opening overs, suffering a top-order collapse, and finally making themselves excessive to achieve.

But no matter what difficulties there are with their batting, if they had taken their catches in the field, that 203 total target would have been significantly less.

It required them three tries to break the 72-run partnership second-wicket association, with wicketkeeper Joty not managing to take a challenging opportunity behind the stumps to dismiss Perera on 23 before the captain got a reprieve from a caught and bowled chance against Rabeya Khan.

The batter was missed further on 55 runs and her score of 63, the latter chance flying right to Rubya Haider Jhilik at cover field, before eventually being trapped leg before wicket by Shorna as she tried to accelerate the scoring with partners being dismissed beside her.

Subsequently in the game, there was furthermore a stumping chance missed and a missed run-out, although the run-out chance was a slightly regrettable, with Jhilik standing in with the gloves due to an fitness issue to Joty.

Unfortunately for Bangladesh, such fielding issues are not at all a isolated incident. They've dropped 14 opportunities from a possible 27 chances at this tournament and boast the lowest fielding effectiveness (48.1 percent) of the eight teams.

They are a side who are typically moving in the right direction – they are participating in just their second 50-over World Cup ultimately – but inadequate fielding is a prominent problem which demands improvement.