Sri Lanka beats the Bangladeshi side to keep their World Cup campaign alive

ICC Women's World Cup, Navi Mumbai

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

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

The Lankan side emerge victorious by seven runs margin

Sri Lanka took four crucial dismissals in the last innings segment to seal a heart-stopping triumph over Bangladesh and preserve their slim aspirations of making it for the tournament knockout stage intact.

Needing a attainable target of 203 on a good batting surface in Navi Mumbai, the Bangladeshi team required nine runs from the last six balls.

Yet, Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu took three important dismissals in four deliveries and de Silva ran out Nahida to secure a exciting victory for Sri Lanka.

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

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

Although Bangladesh got off to the excellent commencement, with Marufa striking with the initial ball of the encounter to remove Vishmi Gunaratne, they were rightfully penalized for a poor fielding display.

They gifted reprieves to Perera, who was spilled multiple times, and the Lankan captain.

Even though Athapaththu could not take advantage, sent back lbw for 46 just one delivery after being dropped by Rabeya, Perera forced Bangladesh pay.

She registered a debut international 50-run score, accumulating 85 from 99 balls and sharing an significant 74-run partnership fifth-wicket collaboration with Nilakshi de Silva.

Bangladesh, led by Shorna's 3-27, dragged themselves back into the contest, with Nilakshi's removal in the 34th over triggering a Sri Lanka batting collapse from 174-4 to 202 total.

While batting second, Sri Lanka's starting bowlers Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani limited Bangladesh to 23-1 in a uninspiring powerplay and they were subsequently brought down to 44-3.

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

It was leaning toward Bangladesh entering the final two bowling phases, with merely 12 runs required.

Nevertheless, Sugandika Dasanayaka sent back Ritu Moni and gave away just three scoring runs before the captain's dramatic spell, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa Akter all sent back as Sri Lanka seized the victory at the very end.

Ultimately, it was a contest of composure. The very experienced Athapaththu, who directed away a several of fellow players as she got ready to deliver the decisive over, held hers. Bangladesh failed to.

There will be numerous doubts about the team's batting effort. They might well have been needing 270 or 280 with Sri Lanka looking at ease on 159 with four wickets down in the 30th over, but rather the target was considerably smaller.

Nevertheless, the batting side showed little purpose from the very beginning, accumulating runs at under 2.5 scoring rate during the powerplay, suffering a early batting collapse, and eventually making themselves too much to accomplish.

But no matter what difficulties there are with their batting lineup, if they had taken their catches in the fielding area, that 203-run objective would have been substantially smaller.

It needed them three tries to break the 72-run stand second-wicket collaboration, with wicketkeeper Joty failing to grab a tough catch as wicketkeeper to remove Hasini Perera on 23 before the captain survived from a return catch opportunity against Rabeya.

The batter was spilled once more on 55 and 63 runs, the final opportunity going directly to Jhilik at cover position, before eventually being given out lbw by Shorna Akter as she attempted to increase the tempo with teammates being dismissed around her.

Later in the innings, there was additionally a stumping chance missed and a run-out opportunity lost, while the second one was a somewhat unlucky, with Jhilik substituting with the wicketkeeping gloves after an physical problem to the regular keeper.

Regrettably for Bangladesh, such fielding woes are nowhere near a isolated incident. They've failed to catch 14 chances from a potential 27 opportunities at this World Cup and have the poorest catch efficiency (48.1 percent) of the eight teams.

They are a side who are generally heading in the proper way – they are competing in only their second ODI World Cup after all – but inadequate fielding standards is a prominent problem which needs attention.