The Lankan team beats Bangladesh to maintain their World Cup tournament hopes breathing

ICC Women's World Cup, Navi Mumbai

Sri Lanka 202 (48.4 overs): Hasini Perera 85 (99); Shorna Akter 3-27

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

Sri Lanka win by seven runs

Sri Lanka claimed four wickets in the last over to achieve a nail-biting victory over their opponents and keep their narrow aspirations of making it for the World Cup semi-finals alive.

Needing a attainable score of 203 on a favorable wicket in Navi Mumbai, the Bangladeshi team required nine more runs from the final six balls.

However, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu secured three important dismissals in four deliveries and Nilakshi de Silva ran out Nahida to bring about a thrilling win for Sri Lanka.

The victory – Sri Lanka's first of the tournament after three unsuccessful matches and two abandoned games against Australia and the Kiwi side – moves them tied on four match points with India and the New Zealand side, who face each other on the coming Thursday.

Bangladesh, in contrast, endured a fifth straight setback since securing victory in their first match against the Pakistani team and have been knocked out.

Even though Bangladesh got off to the excellent commencement, with Marufa Akter taking a wicket with the initial ball of the game to send back Gunaratne, they were rightfully made to pay for a poor fielding performance.

They gifted lifelines to Hasini Perera, who was spilled on three occasions, and Athapaththu.

Although Athapaththu was unable to capitalise, dismissed leg before wicket for 46 just one delivery after being put down by Rabeya Khan, Perera made the opposition regret it.

She achieved a maiden international 50-run score, making 85 from 99 deliveries and contributing to an significant 74-run stand fifth-wicket collaboration with Nilakshi de Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, guided by Shorna's three wickets for 27 runs, fought themselves back to the match, with De Silva's wicket in the 34th innings segment initiating a Lankan batting collapse from 174 with four wickets down to 202 all out.

In reply, Sri Lanka's starting bowlers Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani restricted Bangladesh to 23 for one in a disappointing initial phase and they were afterwards diminished to 44 for three.

Sharmin Akter and Nigar Sultana Joty reconstructed their batting effort, adding 82 runs for the fourth wicket stand before Sharmin retired hurt for a determined 64 in the 36th over.

It was advantage the chasing team entering the remaining two overs, with just 12 runs needed.

Nevertheless, Sugandika Dasanayaka dismissed Ritu Moni and gave away only three scoring runs before Athapaththu's dramatic spell, with Rabeya, Nahida Akter, captain Joty and Marufa Akter all sent back as the Lankan team seized the win at the death.

In the end, it was a match of composure. The very experienced Athapaththu, who directed away a several of team-mates as she set herself to bowl the decisive over, maintained hers. Bangladesh failed to.

There will be numerous inquiries about Bangladesh's batting display. They might well have been needing 270 to 280 with the Lankan team looking settled on 159 for four in the 30th innings segment, but instead the chase was much lower.

Yet, Bangladesh showed little aggression from ball one, making runs at less than 2.5 scoring rate during the opening overs, experiencing a initial wicket loss, and ultimately making themselves overwhelming to achieve.

But whatever problems there are with their batting approach, if they had taken their catches in the fielding department, that 203 total target would have been considerably smaller.

It required them three efforts to terminate the 72-run partnership second-wicket association, with wicketkeeper Nigar Sultana failing to hold a tough chance as wicketkeeper to dismiss Perera on 23 runs before Athapaththu was spared from a return catch chance against Rabeya Khan.

Perera was dropped once more on 55 and 63 runs, the final opportunity going directly to Jhilik at cover, before finally being trapped lbw by Shorna as she tried to up the ante with teammates falling beside her.

Afterwards in the innings, there was also a stumping chance missed and a missed run-out, even though the latter was a little regrettable, with Rubya Haider deputising with the keeping duties due to an fitness issue to Joty.

Sadly for Bangladesh, such fielding issues are not at all a isolated incident. They've missed 14 catches from a possible 27 at this World Cup and boast the poorest fielding effectiveness (less than 50%) of the participating teams.

They are a squad who are generally progressing in the proper way – they are participating in merely their second ODI World Cup after all – but poor fielding standards is a prominent problem which needs improvement.