Sri Lanka snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to record their first win of the Women’s Cricket World Cup, edging out Bangladesh by seven runs in a nerve jangling finish in Navi Mumbai on Monday.
With Bangladesh cruising and only nine needed off the final over with five wickets in hand, having mustered just three runs off the penultimate over, skipper Chamari Athapaththu took the ball herself and turned the game on its head.
Four wickets tumbled in four balls as Bangladesh collapsed, losing five wickets for just two runs.
Athapaththu, calm amid the storm, finished with career-best figures of 4-42.
The drama began with Rabeya Khan trapped leg-before off the first ball, followed by a run-out next delivery.
Then, Bangladesh’s hopes sank when their captain Nigar Sultana danced down the track only to find long-off lurking.
When Marufa Akter was adjudged lbw next ball, Athapaththu had conjured the unthinkable, defending nine with a single run conceded in the over.
“We handled the pressure well. We knew that if we took the game deep, teams could crumble,” Athapaththu said. “It wasn’t perfect, batting collapses and dropped catches hurt us, but luck smiled at us today.”
For once, fortune favoured Sri Lanka, whose campaign had been marred by rain, missed chances and misfiring batters.
Hasini Perera, who struck her maiden ODI half-century, made 85 off 99 balls, peppered with 13 fours and a six.
She was the backbone of Sri Lanka’s 202 all out as she reached the milestone of 1,000 runs in ODIs.
A 74-run partnership with Nilakshika de Silva gave Sri Lanka a solid launch pad, before another collapse saw six wickets fall for 28 run.
Even so, the Sri Lankans held their nerve in the death overs to seal the win and climb to sixth in the standings.
With four points, they are level with New Zealand and India, although will need results to go in their favour to grab the last semi-final spot.
Australia, South Africa and England have already booked their places in the last four.
“We kept losing wickets at crucial times,” admitted Bangladesh skipper Sultana, whose fighting 77 was in vain as her side were eliminated.
“I tried to take the pressure off with a boundary, but it just didn’t come off.”
