The Lankan team overcomes the Bangladeshi side to preserve their World Cup tournament hopes ongoing

ICC Women's World Cup, Mumbai

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

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

Sri Lanka emerge victorious by seven runs

The Lankan cricket team claimed four wickets in the final innings segment to complete a heart-stopping victory over their opponents and keep their slim hopes of qualifying for the World Cup semi-finals ongoing.

Needing a below-par total of 203 on a batting-friendly pitch in the Mumbai stadium, the Bangladeshi team needed nine more runs from the remaining six bowls.

Nevertheless, Sri Lanka captain Athapaththu took three wickets in four balls and de Silva ran out Nahida to secure a dramatic win for the Lankan team.

The victory – Sri Lanka's first of the competition after three losses and two abandoned games against the Australian team and New Zealand – moves them level on four tournament points with the Indian team and the New Zealand side, who face each other on 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 eliminated.

Although the Bangladeshi side got off to the perfect start, with Marufa Akter striking with the first delivery of the game to send back Vishmi Gunaratne, they were appropriately punished for a poor fielding performance.

They gifted second chances to Hasini Perera, who was dropped three times, and Athapaththu.

Although Athapaththu failed to make it count, sent back leg before wicket for 46 a single bowl after being put down by Rabeya, Perera forced Bangladesh pay.

She scored a debut international half-century, accumulating 85 from 99 deliveries and sharing an significant 74-run stand fifth-wicket collaboration with De Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, spearheaded by Shorna Akter's three wickets for 27 runs, dragged themselves back into the game, with Nilakshi's dismissal in the 34th bowling segment triggering a Lankan collapse from 174-4 to 202 total.

During their chase, the Lankan team's initial pace attack Malki Madara and Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23 with one wicket down in a lacklustre initial phase and they were afterwards brought down to 44-3.

Sharmin Akter and Joty restored their batting effort, putting on an 82-run partnership for the fourth wicket stand before Sharmin left the field injured for a determined 64 in the 36th over.

It was in favor of Bangladesh heading into the remaining two innings segments, with merely 12 additional runs needed.

Nevertheless, Dasanayaka sent back Ritu and gave away merely three runs before the captain's decisive intervention, with Rabeya, Nahida Akter, captain Joty and Marufa Akter all removed as the Lankan team grabbed the triumph at the final moment.

Finally, it was a contest of nerves. The highly experienced Athapaththu, who ushered away a few of team-mates as she got ready to bowl the last over, maintained hers. Bangladesh could not.

There will be plenty of inquiries about the team's batting effort. They might well have been pursuing 270 or 280 with the Lankan team appearing comfortable on 159-4 in the 30th innings segment, but rather the target was significantly less.

Yet, Bangladesh lacked purpose from the very beginning, accumulating runs at less than 2.5 scoring rate during the initial phase, undergoing a initial wicket loss, and eventually forcing themselves too much to accomplish.

But whatever issues there are with their batting approach, if they had taken their chances in the fielding area, that 203 total target would have been considerably smaller.

It took them three attempts to end the 72-run second-wicket association, with keeper Joty not managing to hold a tough opportunity as wicketkeeper to remove Hasini Perera on 23 runs before Athapaththu survived from a caught and bowled chance against Rabeya Khan.

The batter was missed again on her score of 55 and her score of 63, the last attempt traveling straight to Jhilik at cover position, before eventually being trapped lbw by Shorna as she tried to accelerate the scoring with partners being dismissed beside her.

Afterwards in the innings, there was also a failed stumping and a missed run-out, even though the latter was a slightly unfortunate, with Jhilik substituting with the wicketkeeping gloves due to an physical problem to the regular keeper.

Unfortunately for Bangladesh, such fielding woes are far from a single occurrence. They've missed 14 opportunities from a possible 27 opportunities at this competition and have the worst catch efficiency (48.1 percent) of the participating teams.

They are a squad who are typically progressing in the correct path – they are participating in merely their second one-day World Cup in the end – but inadequate fielding standards is a prominent concern which demands focus.