Sri Lanka defeats the Bangladeshi side to keep their campaign breathing

ICC Women's 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

The Lankan side win by seven runs

Sri Lanka secured four wickets in the last over to achieve a thrilling triumph over Bangladesh and preserve their faint aspirations of qualifying for the tournament knockout stage intact.

Pursuing a below-par total of 203 on a batting-friendly pitch in Navi Mumbai, the Bangladeshi team needed nine runs from the final six balls.

Nevertheless, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu secured three wickets in four bowls and Nilakshi de Silva dismissed via run-out Nahida Akter to secure a exciting victory for Sri Lanka.

The triumph – the Lankan team's initial of the competition after three unsuccessful matches and two abandoned games against the Australian team and the Kiwi side – elevates them equal on four match points with India and the New Zealand side, who face each other on the coming Thursday.

The Bangladeshi team, on the other hand, experienced a fifth straight loss since winning their first match against the Pakistani team and have been eliminated.

Although the Bangladeshi side got off to the perfect start, with Marufa Akter striking with the first delivery of the encounter to send back Vishmi Gunaratne, they were rightfully punished for a disappointing fielding display.

They provided second chances to Hasini Perera, who was spilled three times, and Athapaththu.

While the Sri Lankan skipper failed to make it count, removed lbw for 46 a single bowl after being put down by Rabeya Khan, Perera made Bangladesh regret it.

She achieved a first international fifty, making 85 from 99 balls and contributing to an crucial 74-run stand fifth-wicket collaboration with Nilakshi de Silva.

Bangladesh, guided by Shorna's three wickets for 27 runs, fought themselves back into the game, with De Silva's dismissal in the 34th over causing a Lankan collapse from 174 with four wickets down to 202 complete.

While batting second, the Lankan team's initial pace attack Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani contained the opposition to 23 with one wicket down in a uninspiring initial phase and they were subsequently brought down to 44 for three.

Sharmin Akter and Joty rebuilt their innings, adding 82 for the fourth wicket collaboration before the batter withdrew due to injury for a stubborn 64 in the 36th innings segment.

It was leaning toward the chasing team entering the final two innings segments, with just 12 additional runs required.

However, Dasanayaka dismissed Ritu and conceded merely three runs before Athapaththu's dramatic spell, with Rabeya, Nahida, captain Joty and Marufa all dismissed as the Lankan team seized the triumph at the final moment.

Ultimately, it was a contest of nerve. The highly experienced Lankan captain, who ushered away a several of team-mates as she set herself to deliver the last over, maintained her composure. The opposition failed to.

There will be numerous inquiries about the team's batting performance. They could easily have been chasing around 270-280 with Sri Lanka seeming comfortable on 159 with four wickets down in the 30th bowling phase, but in contrast the target was considerably smaller.

However, the batting side displayed insufficient aggression from ball one, making runs at less than 2.5 runs per over during the powerplay, suffering a top-order collapse, and ultimately leaving themselves excessive to achieve.

But no matter what problems there are with their batting, if they had accepted their opportunities in the field, that 203 total target would have been significantly less.

It needed them three attempts to break the 72-run second-wicket, with wicketkeeper Joty not managing to hold a difficult chance as wicketkeeper to send back Hasini Perera on 23 before Athapaththu got a reprieve from a return catch possibility against Rabeya Khan.

Perera was spilled again on her score of 55 and 63 runs, the last attempt traveling straight to Rubya Haider Jhilik at cover, before finally being trapped lbw by Shorna as she sought to increase the tempo with batting partners being dismissed around her.

Later in the game, there was furthermore a stumping chance missed and a run-out opportunity lost, while the run-out chance was a somewhat regrettable, with Jhilik substituting with the wicketkeeping gloves following an fitness issue to Joty.

Unfortunately for Bangladesh, such fielding issues are far from a single occurrence. They've failed to catch 14 catches from a available 27 chances at this World Cup and have the worst catch efficiency (48.1%) of the participating teams.

They are a side who are overall heading in the proper way – they are competing in merely their second one-day World Cup after all – but poor fielding is a obvious problem which needs attention.