Sri Lanka overcomes the Bangladeshi side to preserve their campaign alive

Women's Cricket World Cup, Mumbai

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

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

The Lankan side emerge victorious by seven runs

The Lankan cricket team took four wickets in the final innings segment to complete a heart-stopping win over Bangladesh and preserve their slim aspirations of making it for the World Cup semi-finals intact.

Pursuing a modest target of 203 on a good batting surface in Navi Mumbai, the Bangladeshi team needed nine runs from the remaining six balls.

However, Lankan skipper Athapaththu secured three crucial wickets in four balls and de Silva dismissed via run-out Nahida Akter to secure a dramatic success for Sri Lanka.

The win – Sri Lanka's maiden of the competition after three losses and two washed-out matches against the Australian team and the Kiwi side – moves them equal on four points with the Indian team and New Zealand, who confront each other on Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, however, experienced a fifth consecutive setback since securing victory in their first match against Pakistan and have been eliminated.

Even though Bangladesh made the excellent commencement, with Marufa striking with the initial ball of the encounter to dismiss Gunaratne, they were deservedly punished for a subpar fielding display.

They provided reprieves to Hasini Perera, who was missed multiple times, and the Lankan captain.

While the Sri Lankan skipper was unable to capitalise, removed leg before wicket for 46 one ball after being dropped by Rabeya, Perera forced the opposition regret it.

She registered a maiden international 50-run score, making 85 from 99 bowls and sharing an crucial 74-run partnership fifth-wicket with De Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, spearheaded by Shorna's impressive bowling figures, fought themselves back in the match, with De Silva's removal in the 34th bowling segment triggering a Sri Lanka downfall from 174-4 to 202 all out.

In reply, the Lankan team's initial pace attack Madara and Prabodhani limited Bangladesh to 23 for one in a uninspiring powerplay and they were later diminished to 44 with three wickets lost.

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

It was advantage Bangladesh approaching the final two bowling phases, with only 12 additional runs required.

However, Dasanayaka dismissed Ritu Moni and allowed only three scoring runs before Athapaththu's chaos, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida Akter, captain Joty and Marufa all removed as the Lankan team grabbed the win at the very end.

In the end, it was a game of composure. The very experienced Lankan captain, who ushered away a several of teammates as she set herself to bowl the last over, held hers. Bangladesh could not.

There will be many inquiries about the team's batting display. They possibly have been needing 270 or 280 with Sri Lanka appearing comfortable on 159 with four wickets down in the 30th bowling phase, but instead the required total was considerably smaller.

Nevertheless, Bangladesh showed little purpose from the start, making runs at under 2.5 runs each over during the opening overs, experiencing a early batting collapse, and eventually forcing themselves too much to do.

But no matter what issues there are with their batting, if they had accepted their opportunities in the fielding department, that 203-run target goal would have been considerably less.

It required them three attempts to end the 72-run stand second-wicket association, with wicketkeeper Joty not managing to take a tough opportunity behind the stumps to dismiss Perera on 23 runs before the captain survived from a caught and bowled opportunity against Rabeya.

Perera was dropped again on 55 runs and 63, the latter chance flying directly to Rubya Haider Jhilik at cover field, before ultimately being dismissed lbw by Shorna as she tried to up the ante with batting partners being dismissed around her.

Later in the batting effort, there was additionally a failed stumping and a failed run-out, even though the latter was a slightly unlucky, with Jhilik substituting with the gloves after an fitness issue to the regular keeper.

Unfortunately for the team, such fielding woes are not at all a isolated incident. They've dropped 14 catches from a possible 27 opportunities at this World Cup and boast the poorest catch efficiency (48.1%) of the participating teams.

They are a side who are overall progressing in the right direction – they are playing in merely their second 50-over World Cup ultimately – but inadequate fielding standards is a obvious issue which requires focus.