Sri Lanka beats 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 Akter 3-27

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

The Lankan side win by seven runs

The Lankan cricket team secured four crucial dismissals in the last over to complete a thrilling victory over Bangladesh and maintain their slim hopes of qualifying for the tournament knockout stage ongoing.

Needing a modest total of 203 on a good batting surface in the Mumbai stadium, Bangladesh wanted nine additional runs from the last six balls.

Nevertheless, Lankan skipper Athapaththu claimed three important dismissals in four bowls and Nilakshi de Silva dismissed via run-out Nahida to bring about a dramatic success for Sri Lanka.

The win – Sri Lanka's first of the tournament after three defeats and two washed-out matches against Australia and New Zealand – elevates them level on four points with India and the New Zealand side, who meet each other on Thursday.

Bangladesh, however, experienced a fifth successive loss since winning their initial game against the Pakistani team and have been removed from contention.

Even though Bangladesh made the ideal beginning, with Marufa Akter striking with the opening bowl of the match to dismiss Vishmi Gunaratne, they were appropriately made to pay for a poor fielding display.

They gifted second chances to Perera, who was spilled on three occasions, and Athapaththu.

Although the Sri Lankan skipper failed to make it count, sent back lbw for 46 just one delivery after being put down by Rabeya Khan, Perera made Bangladesh suffer.

She registered a first international half-century, making 85 from 99 balls and contributing to an significant 74-run stand fifth-wicket association with Nilakshi de Silva.

Bangladesh, led by Shorna's impressive bowling figures, fought themselves back in the contest, with De Silva's removal in the 34th innings segment causing a Sri Lanka downfall from 174-4 to 202 complete.

While batting second, Sri Lanka's initial pace attack Madara and Prabodhani restricted the opposition to 23 with one wicket down in a lacklustre opening overs and they were subsequently diminished to 44 with three wickets lost.

Sharmin Akter and Nigar Sultana Joty restored their batting effort, putting on 82 runs for the fourth wicket stand before the batter retired hurt for a determined 64 in the 36th innings segment.

It was leaning toward Bangladesh heading into the remaining two bowling phases, with merely 12 additional runs needed.

Nevertheless, Sugandika Dasanayaka sent back Ritu and allowed just three runs before Athapaththu's decisive intervention, with Rabeya, Nahida Akter, captain Joty and Marufa Akter all removed as the Lankan team seized the victory at the very end.

In the end, it was a game of composure. The highly experienced Athapaththu, who directed away a several of teammates as she set herself to bowl the decisive over, kept hers. Bangladesh did not.

There will be plenty of inquiries about the team's batting display. They could easily have been pursuing around 270-280 with the Lankan team appearing settled on 159-4 in the 30th innings segment, but in contrast the required total was significantly less.

However, the batting side displayed insufficient aggression from the start, accumulating runs at less than 2.5 runs per over during the powerplay, undergoing a early batting collapse, and ultimately making themselves excessive to achieve.

But whatever issues there are with their batting approach, if they had accepted their opportunities in the field, that 203 total objective would have been substantially smaller.

It required them three tries to break the 72-run stand second-wicket association, with wicketkeeper Joty failing to grab a tough opportunity while keeping to remove Perera on her score of 23 before Athapaththu was spared from a return catch possibility against Rabeya.

The batter was dropped again on her score of 55 and 63 runs, the final opportunity traveling directly to Jhilik at cover position, before ultimately being given out leg before wicket by Shorna as she tried to up the ante with teammates falling around her.

Subsequently in the game, there was also a missed stumping and a run-out opportunity lost, although the latter was a slightly unlucky, with Rubya Haider standing in with the keeping duties due to an injury to Joty.

Unfortunately for the team, such fielding problems are far from a one-off. They've dropped 14 catches from a available 27 chances at this tournament and boast the worst catching success rate (less than 50%) of the competing sides.

They are a squad who are typically progressing in the proper way – they are playing in merely their second one-day World Cup after all – but substandard fielding is a glaring concern which needs focus.