Sri Lanka defeats Bangladesh to preserve their World Cup tournament hopes ongoing
The Lankan team will confront Pakistan in their crucial last tournament encounter
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): Nigar Sultana Joty 77 (98); Athapaththu 4-42
The Lankan side emerge victorious by seven runs margin
The Lankan cricket team took four wickets in the last innings segment to seal a heart-stopping triumph over Bangladesh and keep their slim chances of making it for the World Cup semi-finals ongoing.
Needing a modest target of 203 on a batting-friendly pitch in the Mumbai stadium, the Bangladeshi team wanted nine runs from the final six deliveries.
Yet, Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu took three important dismissals in four deliveries and Nilakshi de Silva ran out Nahida Akter to secure a dramatic win for Sri Lanka.
The win – the Lankan team's maiden of the competition after three defeats and two no-results against Australia and New Zealand – elevates them tied on four match points with India and New Zealand, who meet each other on Thursday.
The Bangladeshi team, however, suffered a fifth consecutive setback since winning their tournament opener against the Pakistani team and have been eliminated.
Although the Bangladeshi side made the perfect start, with Marufa striking with the initial ball of the game to send back Gunaratne, they were appropriately made to pay for a poor fielding performance.
They gifted lifelines to Hasini Perera, who was dropped multiple times, and the Lankan captain.
Even though the Sri Lankan skipper was unable to make it count, dismissed leg before wicket for 46 a single bowl after being dropped by Rabeya Khan, Hasini Perera made Bangladesh suffer.
She achieved a maiden international fifty, scoring 85 from 99 balls and contributing to an significant 74-run stand fifth-wicket with Nilakshi de Silva.
Bangladesh, spearheaded by Shorna Akter's impressive bowling figures, dragged themselves back to the match, with De Silva's wicket in the 34th bowling segment triggering a Sri Lanka batting collapse from 174 with four wickets down to 202 total.
While batting second, the Lankan team's initial pace attack Malki Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23 for one in a lacklustre initial phase and they were subsequently diminished to 44 for three.
Sharmin and Nigar Sultana Joty rebuilt their innings, adding 82 runs for the fourth wicket stand before Sharmin left the field injured for a resolute 64 in the 36th bowling phase.
It was leaning toward the chasing team heading into the remaining two bowling phases, with merely 12 more runs needed.
Nevertheless, Sugandika Dasanayaka removed Ritu Moni and allowed just three scoring runs before the captain's chaos, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida Akter, skipper Joty and Marufa all removed as Sri Lanka grabbed the win at the very end.
Bangladesh are unable to keep calm - and catches
In the end, it was a game of nerves. The seasoned Lankan captain, who ushered away a handful of teammates as she got ready to deliver the decisive over, held her composure. Bangladesh did not.
There will be plenty of doubts about Bangladesh's batting performance. They might well have been needing 270 to 280 with the Lankan team appearing settled on 159 for four in the 30th over, but instead the target was significantly less.
Yet, the batting side lacked intent from the start, scoring at less than 2.5 runs per over during the opening overs, undergoing a early batting collapse, and ultimately forcing themselves overwhelming to achieve.
But whatever difficulties there are with their batting lineup, if they had taken their chances in the field, that 203 total goal would have been significantly less.
It needed them three attempts to end the 72-run stand second-wicket collaboration, with wicketkeeper Joty failing to hold a challenging catch as wicketkeeper to send back Hasini Perera on 23 before the captain was spared from a caught and bowled possibility against Rabeya.
Perera was missed once more on 55 runs and 63 runs, the latter chance traveling directly to Jhilik at cover field, before eventually being dismissed lbw by Shorna as she attempted to increase the tempo with batting partners falling near her.
Afterwards in the innings, there was also a missed stumping and a failed run-out, while the run-out chance was a somewhat unfortunate, with Jhilik deputising with the wicketkeeping gloves after an injury to the regular keeper.
Regrettably for the team, such fielding problems are far from a isolated incident. They've missed 14 chances from a available 27 at this tournament and display the poorest fielding effectiveness (less than 50%) of the participating teams.
They are a squad who are typically heading in the proper way – they are participating in only their second 50-over World Cup ultimately – but inadequate fielding performance is a obvious issue which requires improvement.
