Sri Lanka overcomes the Bangladeshi side to maintain their World Cup tournament hopes alive

ICC Women's World Cup, Navi Mumbai

The Lankan team 202 (48.4 overs): Hasini Perera 85 (99); Shorna Akter 3-27

Bangladesh 195-9 (50 overs): Nigar Sultana Joty 77 (98); Chamari Athapaththu 4-42

Sri Lanka win by seven runs

Sri Lanka claimed four crucial dismissals in the last innings segment to complete a heart-stopping triumph over Bangladesh and preserve their slim chances of making it for the World Cup semi-finals alive.

Needing a below-par score of 203 on a batting-friendly pitch in Navi Mumbai, Bangladesh required nine additional runs from the remaining six deliveries.

Yet, Sri Lanka captain Athapaththu took three crucial wickets in four deliveries and de Silva ran out Nahida to achieve a exciting win for Sri Lanka.

The victory – Sri Lanka's initial of the competition after three unsuccessful matches and two abandoned games against the Australian team and New Zealand – pushes them level on four match points with the Indian team and the New Zealand side, who confront each other on the coming Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, however, endured a fifth successive defeat since securing victory in their tournament opener against Pakistan and have been eliminated.

Although Bangladesh made the ideal beginning, with Marufa Akter taking a wicket with the opening bowl of the match to remove Gunaratne, they were rightfully punished for a poor fielding performance.

They gifted reprieves to Hasini Perera, who was spilled on three occasions, and the Lankan captain.

Although the Sri Lankan skipper failed to take advantage, sent back lbw for 46 just one delivery after being missed by Rabeya, Perera made Bangladesh suffer.

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

Bangladesh, guided by Shorna Akter's impressive bowling figures, dragged themselves back in the contest, with De Silva's dismissal in the 34th bowling segment triggering a Sri Lanka downfall from 174 with four wickets down to 202 complete.

While batting second, Sri Lanka's starting bowlers Malki Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani restricted the opposition to 23-1 in a lacklustre initial phase and they were afterwards diminished to 44 with three wickets lost.

Sharmin Akter and Nigar Sultana Joty restored their score, contributing 82 for the fourth wicket stand before Sharmin left the field injured for a stubborn 64 in the 36th bowling phase.

It was in favor of Bangladesh approaching the remaining two overs, with just 12 more runs needed.

However, Sugandika Dasanayaka dismissed Ritu Moni and conceded just three runs before the captain's decisive intervention, with Rabeya, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa all removed as Sri Lanka seized the triumph at the very end.

Ultimately, it was a contest of composure. The highly experienced Athapaththu, who moved aside a handful of teammates as she prepared to deliver the last over, kept her nerve. The opposition failed to.

There will be plenty of doubts about the team's batting performance. They could easily have been pursuing 270 to 280 with the Lankan team seeming at ease on 159 with four wickets down in the 30th bowling phase, but rather the required total was much lower.

Nevertheless, Bangladesh showed little intent from the start, scoring at below 2.5 runs per over during the opening overs, undergoing a initial wicket loss, and finally forcing themselves overwhelming to do.

But no matter what issues there are with their batting lineup, if they had accepted their catches in the field, that 203 total goal would have been significantly lower.

It required them three efforts to break the 72-run stand second-wicket, with wicketkeeper Joty not managing to take a challenging catch behind the stumps to send back Perera on 23 before the captain survived from a caught and bowled possibility against Rabeya Khan.

Perera was missed once more on her score of 55 and her score of 63, the final opportunity going straight to Jhilik at cover, before ultimately being given out leg before wicket by Shorna as she attempted to increase the tempo with partners falling near her.

Later in the innings, there was additionally a stumping chance missed and a missed run-out, although the run-out chance was a little unlucky, with Rubya Haider standing in with the gloves after an injury to the regular keeper.

Regrettably for Bangladesh, such fielding problems are not at all a isolated incident. They've failed to catch 14 catches from a potential 27 at this competition and boast the poorest catch efficiency (less than 50%) of the eight teams.

They are a squad who are overall moving in the right direction – they are participating in just their second ODI World Cup ultimately – but substandard fielding is a obvious issue which demands attention.