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

Women's Cricket World Cup, Mumbai

The Lankan team 202 (48.4 overs): Hasini Perera 85 (99); Shorna 3-27

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

Sri Lanka emerge victorious by seven runs margin

The Lankan cricket team claimed four crucial dismissals in the decisive innings segment to seal a nail-biting victory over their opponents and maintain their faint chances of qualifying for the tournament knockout stage ongoing.

Pursuing a attainable score of 203 on a batting-friendly pitch in the Mumbai stadium, Bangladesh required nine more runs from the remaining six deliveries.

However, Lankan skipper Athapaththu took three crucial wickets in four bowls and de Silva ran out Nahida Akter to achieve a thrilling success for Sri Lanka.

The triumph – the Lankan team's initial of the competition after three unsuccessful matches and two washed-out matches against Australia and New Zealand – elevates them tied on four tournament points with India and the New Zealand side, who confront each other on the coming Thursday.

Bangladesh, in contrast, endured a fifth straight loss since securing victory in their tournament opener against Pakistan and have been eliminated.

While Bangladesh got off to the perfect start, with Marufa Akter taking a wicket with the opening bowl of the encounter to send back Vishmi Gunaratne, they were appropriately made to pay for a poor fielding display.

They offered reprieves to Hasini Perera, who was dropped three times, and Athapaththu.

Even though the Sri Lankan skipper could not make it count, removed leg before wicket for 46 one ball after being put down by Rabeya, Perera forced Bangladesh suffer.

She scored a maiden international fifty, scoring 85 from 99 bowls and building an important 74-run stand fifth-wicket collaboration with Nilakshi de Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, spearheaded by Shorna's impressive bowling figures, dragged themselves back into the contest, with Nilakshi's removal in the 34th over initiating a Sri Lanka collapse from 174 for four to 202 complete.

During their chase, Sri Lanka's starting bowlers Madara and Prabodhani limited Bangladesh to 23 for one in a lacklustre initial phase and they were later diminished to 44 for three.

Sharmin and Joty reconstructed their batting effort, contributing 82 for the fourth wicket before Sharmin retired hurt for a resolute 64 in the 36th bowling phase.

It was in favor of the chasing team entering the remaining two overs, with merely 12 more runs necessary.

Yet, Sugandika Dasanayaka removed Ritu Moni and gave away merely three scoring runs before the captain's chaos, with Rabeya, Nahida Akter, captain Joty and Marufa all dismissed as Sri Lanka grabbed the triumph at the very end.

In the end, it was a match of nerve. The seasoned Lankan captain, who ushered away a several of fellow players as she got ready to bowl the decisive over, held hers. Bangladesh did not.

There will be many doubts about the team's batting display. They possibly have been chasing 270 or 280 with the Lankan team looking at ease on 159 with four wickets down in the 30th over, but in contrast the target was significantly less.

Nevertheless, the batting side showed little intent from the start, making runs at less than 2.5 runs per over during the opening overs, suffering a early batting collapse, and ultimately leaving themselves too much to achieve.

But whatever difficulties there are with their batting approach, if they had taken their opportunities in the fielding area, that 203-run goal would have been substantially less.

It took them three efforts to terminate the 72-run second-wicket, with keeper Joty being unable to take a challenging catch behind the stumps to send back Perera on 23 before Athapaththu survived from a caught and bowled chance possibility against Rabeya.

Perera was missed again on her score of 55 and her score of 63, the final opportunity going right to Rubya Haider Jhilik at cover, before finally being trapped lbw by Shorna Akter as she tried to increase the tempo with batting partners being dismissed beside her.

Later in the innings, there was additionally a missed stumping and a failed run-out, while the second one was a slightly unfortunate, with Rubya Haider substituting with the wicketkeeping gloves following an fitness issue to the regular keeper.

Regrettably for Bangladesh, such fielding issues are far from a isolated incident. They've missed 14 catches from a potential 27 at this tournament and display the poorest fielding effectiveness (48.1 percent) of the eight teams.

They are a squad who are generally moving in the correct path – they are playing in just their second ODI World Cup in the end – but substandard fielding standards is a glaring problem which requires focus.