The Lankan team overcomes the Bangladeshi side to keep their campaign ongoing

Women's Cricket World Cup, Navi Mumbai

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

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

Sri Lanka emerge victorious by seven runs

The Lankan cricket team secured four crucial dismissals in the final innings segment to achieve a nail-biting victory over their opponents and preserve their slim chances of making it for the tournament knockout stage intact.

Pursuing a attainable total of 203 on a favorable wicket in Navi Mumbai, Bangladesh required nine runs from the remaining six balls.

Yet, Lankan skipper Athapaththu claimed three crucial wickets in four balls and de Silva ran out Nahida to achieve a exciting victory for Sri Lanka.

The win – the Lankan team's initial of the competition after three unsuccessful matches and two no-results against Australia and New Zealand – moves them level on four tournament points with the Indian team and the New Zealand side, who confront each other on Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, on the other hand, suffered a fifth consecutive loss since securing victory in their tournament opener against the Pakistani team and have been knocked out.

Although the Bangladeshi side got off to the excellent commencement, with Marufa striking with the opening bowl of the match to dismiss Vishmi Gunaratne, they were rightfully punished for a subpar fielding performance.

They offered second chances to Hasini Perera, who was dropped on three occasions, and the Lankan captain.

Although the Sri Lankan skipper was unable to take advantage, removed leg before wicket for 46 just one delivery after being dropped by Rabeya, Perera made the opposition regret it.

She scored a first international 50-run score, making 85 from 99 balls and contributing to an crucial 74-run stand fifth-wicket association with Nilakshi de Silva.

Bangladesh, spearheaded by Shorna's 3-27, pulled themselves back in the match, with Nilakshi's dismissal in the 34th bowling segment initiating a Sri Lanka collapse from 174 for four to 202 complete.

During their chase, Sri Lanka's starting bowlers Malki Madara and Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23-1 in a uninspiring opening overs and they were afterwards diminished to 44 for three.

Sharmin and Joty rebuilt their score, contributing 82 runs for the fourth wicket collaboration before the batter withdrew due to injury for a determined 64 in the 36th over.

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

However, Dasanayaka dismissed Ritu and conceded just three scoring runs before the captain's dramatic spell, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa Akter all dismissed as the Lankan team grabbed the win at the death.

Ultimately, it was a game of composure. The seasoned Athapaththu, who directed away a handful of team-mates as she prepared to deliver the last over, held her nerve. Bangladesh did not.

There will be plenty of doubts about Bangladesh's batting performance. They could easily have been pursuing 270 or 280 with the Lankan team seeming settled on 159-4 in the 30th innings segment, but instead the chase was much lower.

However, the batting side displayed insufficient aggression from the start, accumulating runs at below 2.5 scoring rate during the initial phase, undergoing a early batting collapse, and ultimately leaving themselves excessive to do.

But no matter what issues there are with their batting, if they had seized their catches in the fielding department, that 203 total objective would have been significantly smaller.

It needed them three efforts to terminate the 72-run stand second-wicket collaboration, with keeper Joty being unable to hold a tough opportunity as wicketkeeper to remove Perera on 23 runs before Athapaththu survived from a caught and bowled possibility against Rabeya.

The batter was dropped further on her score of 55 and her score of 63, the final opportunity flying straight to Jhilik at cover, before ultimately being trapped lbw by Shorna as she tried to up the ante with batting partners falling around her.

Subsequently in the game, there was additionally a stumping chance missed and a failed run-out, even though the latter was a slightly unfortunate, with Rubya Haider substituting with the gloves due to an fitness issue to the regular keeper.

Unfortunately for the team, such fielding woes are not at all a isolated incident. They've missed 14 opportunities from a possible 27 chances at this competition and display the worst catch efficiency (48.1%) of the eight teams.

They are a side who are overall progressing in the proper way – they are competing in just their second one-day World Cup after all – but poor fielding standards is a glaring problem which requires attention.