The Lankan team beats Bangladesh to preserve their campaign alive

ICC Women's World Cup, Navi Mumbai

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

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

The Lankan side win by seven runs

The Lankan cricket team took four wickets in the last over to seal a heart-stopping triumph over their opponents and keep their slim hopes of making it for the World Cup semi-finals alive.

Pursuing a modest target of 203 on a good batting surface in the Mumbai stadium, Bangladesh wanted nine additional runs from the remaining six balls.

However, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu secured three important dismissals in four deliveries and de Silva ran out Nahida to achieve a exciting victory for Sri Lanka.

The win – the Lankan team's maiden of the tournament after three unsuccessful matches and two abandoned games against the Australian team and New Zealand – moves them equal on four points with the Indian team and New Zealand, who meet each other on the coming Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, on the other hand, endured a fifth consecutive setback since securing victory in their first match against Pakistan and have been removed from contention.

While the Bangladeshi side got off to the perfect start, with Marufa striking with the first delivery of the encounter to send back Gunaratne, they were rightfully made to pay for a disappointing fielding effort.

They offered reprieves to Hasini Perera, who was spilled on three occasions, and the Lankan captain.

While Athapaththu was unable to capitalise, sent back lbw for 46 a single bowl after being dropped by Rabeya, Hasini Perera forced Bangladesh suffer.

She achieved a first international 50-run score, scoring 85 from 99 balls and sharing an important 74-run stand fifth-wicket with De Silva.

Bangladesh, led by Shorna Akter's three wickets for 27 runs, fought themselves back to the game, with Nilakshi's wicket in the 34th over causing a Sri Lanka batting collapse from 174-4 to 202 all out.

While batting second, Sri Lanka's opening bowlers Malki Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23-1 in a disappointing powerplay and they were later diminished to 44-3.

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

It was advantage the chasing team entering the last two bowling phases, with just 12 runs necessary.

However, Sugandika Dasanayaka sent back Ritu and gave away just three runs before Athapaththu's chaos, with Rabeya, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa all dismissed as Sri Lanka grabbed the victory at the very end.

Finally, it was a match of composure. The seasoned Lankan captain, who moved aside a few of teammates as she prepared to deliver the decisive over, kept her nerve. Bangladesh failed to.

There will be numerous questions about Bangladesh's batting performance. They could easily have been chasing 270 to 280 with Sri Lanka appearing at ease on 159 for four in the 30th over, but in contrast the required total was considerably smaller.

Yet, the batting side lacked intent from ball one, accumulating runs at under 2.5 runs per over during the opening overs, undergoing a top-order collapse, and eventually making themselves too much to do.

But whatever issues there are with their batting, if they had taken their catches in the fielding department, that 203-run target goal would have been substantially less.

It took them three attempts to end the 72-run partnership second-wicket association, with keeper Joty failing to hold a difficult catch as wicketkeeper to send back Perera on 23 before Athapaththu survived from a caught and bowled opportunity against Rabeya.

The batter was dropped once more on 55 runs and 63 runs, the last attempt flying straight to Jhilik at cover, before eventually being dismissed lbw by Shorna as she attempted to accelerate the scoring with batting partners being dismissed near her.

Afterwards in the game, there was additionally a stumping chance missed and a failed run-out, even though the second one was a little unfortunate, with Rubya Haider standing in with the keeping duties due to an fitness issue to the regular keeper.

Regrettably for the team, such fielding woes are not at all a one-off. They've dropped 14 chances from a available 27 chances at this tournament and boast the worst catch efficiency (48.1%) of the eight teams.

They are a team who are generally moving in the correct path – they are participating in only their second ODI World Cup ultimately – but poor fielding standards is a prominent problem which demands focus.