The Lankan team beats the Bangladeshi side to maintain their campaign breathing

Women's Cricket World Cup, Mumbai

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

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

The Lankan side win by seven runs

Sri Lanka secured four crucial dismissals in the final innings segment to achieve a thrilling victory over Bangladesh and maintain their faint hopes of making it for the World Cup semi-finals intact.

Pursuing a modest total of 203 on a good batting surface in Navi Mumbai, the Bangladeshi team required nine runs from the final six deliveries.

Yet, Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu claimed three important dismissals in four bowls and de Silva dismissed via run-out Nahida Akter to achieve a dramatic success for the Lankan team.

The victory – Sri Lanka's first of the World Cup after three unsuccessful matches and two no-results against Australia and New Zealand – elevates them equal on four points with India and New Zealand, who face each other on Thursday.

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

Although the Bangladeshi side got off to the perfect start, with Marufa striking with the first delivery of the encounter to remove Gunaratne, they were rightfully penalized for a disappointing fielding effort.

They offered lifelines to Perera, who was spilled three times, and the Lankan captain.

Although the Sri Lankan skipper could not capitalise, removed lbw for 46 just one delivery after being missed by Rabeya, Perera made Bangladesh regret it.

She scored a maiden international 50-run score, scoring 85 from 99 balls and building an significant 74-run fifth-wicket association with Nilakshi de Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, led by Shorna's impressive bowling figures, fought themselves back in the game, with Nilakshi's dismissal in the 34th bowling segment triggering a Lankan batting collapse from 174 with four wickets down to 202 total.

While batting second, Sri Lanka's initial pace attack Malki Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani contained Bangladesh to 23-1 in a lacklustre initial phase and they were later reduced to 44 for three.

Sharmin Akter and Joty rebuilt their batting effort, putting on an 82-run partnership for the fourth wicket before Sharmin left the field injured for a stubborn 64 in the 36th innings segment.

It was in favor of Bangladesh entering the remaining two bowling phases, with just 12 runs necessary.

Yet, Sugandika Dasanayaka dismissed Ritu Moni and conceded just three scoring runs before Athapaththu's decisive intervention, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida Akter, skipper Joty and Marufa all dismissed as Sri Lanka grabbed the triumph at the death.

Finally, it was a contest of nerve. The highly experienced Athapaththu, who moved aside a several of team-mates as she prepared to deliver the final over, held her composure. The opposition failed to.

There will be plenty of inquiries about Bangladesh's batting performance. They possibly have been pursuing 270 or 280 with Sri Lanka looking comfortable on 159 for four in the 30th over, but instead the required total was significantly less.

However, Bangladesh lacked aggression from the start, making runs at less than 2.5 runs each over during the opening overs, undergoing a initial wicket loss, and finally making themselves overwhelming to accomplish.

But whatever difficulties there are with their batting approach, if they had accepted their chances in the field, that 203-run target goal would have been substantially smaller.

It needed them three attempts to end the 72-run partnership second-wicket association, with keeper Nigar Sultana being unable to take a tough chance while keeping to dismiss Hasini Perera on her score of 23 before Athapaththu was spared from a return catch opportunity against Rabeya.

Perera was spilled again on 55 runs and 63, the last attempt traveling directly to Jhilik at cover position, before finally being dismissed lbw by Shorna as she tried to up the ante with partners falling near her.

Later in the game, there was additionally a stumping chance missed and a failed run-out, although the second one was a somewhat unfortunate, with Rubya Haider standing in with the keeping duties after an physical problem to the regular keeper.

Regrettably for the team, such fielding problems are far from a one-off. They've dropped 14 chances from a available 27 opportunities at this competition and boast the poorest catch efficiency (48.1%) of the participating teams.

They are a side who are generally heading in the correct path – they are participating in just their second ODI World Cup in the end – but substandard fielding standards is a glaring problem which demands improvement.