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

Women's Cricket World Cup, Mumbai

Sri Lanka 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

Sri Lanka win by seven runs margin

The Lankan cricket team claimed four wickets in the decisive innings segment to achieve a heart-stopping triumph over Bangladesh and keep their slim chances of making it for the tournament knockout stage alive.

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

Yet, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu claimed three wickets in four balls and Nilakshi de Silva ran out Nahida to secure a dramatic success for Sri Lanka.

The victory – Sri Lanka's first of the World Cup after three unsuccessful matches and two abandoned games against the Australian team and New Zealand – elevates them tied on four tournament points with India and the New Zealand side, who meet each other on Thursday.

Bangladesh, in contrast, endured a fifth successive defeat since winning their initial game against the Pakistani team and have been knocked out.

Although the Bangladeshi side got off to the ideal beginning, with Marufa taking a wicket with the first delivery of the match to remove Vishmi Gunaratne, they were deservedly made to pay for a disappointing fielding display.

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

Even though Athapaththu could not take advantage, removed leg before wicket for 46 just one delivery after being missed by Rabeya, Hasini Perera made the opposition suffer.

She scored a maiden international half-century, accumulating 85 from 99 balls and sharing an significant 74-run partnership fifth-wicket with Nilakshi de Silva.

The Bangladeshi team, spearheaded by Shorna's impressive bowling figures, pulled themselves back in the game, with Nilakshi's dismissal in the 34th innings segment initiating a Lankan downfall from 174 for four to 202 total.

During their chase, Sri Lanka's initial pace attack Madara and Udeshika Prabodhani limited the opposition to 23 with one wicket down in a lacklustre powerplay and they were subsequently diminished to 44-3.

Sharmin and Nigar Sultana Joty rebuilt their innings, contributing 82 runs for the fourth wicket stand before Sharmin left the field injured for a determined 64 in the 36th over.

It was leaning toward Bangladesh approaching the last two overs, with merely 12 runs required.

Yet, Dasanayaka sent back Ritu and conceded just three scoring runs before the captain's dramatic spell, with Rabeya Khan, Nahida Akter, captain Joty and Marufa all sent back as the Lankan team grabbed the win at the very end.

In the end, it was a contest of nerves. The very experienced Athapaththu, who moved aside a several of fellow players as she prepared to deliver the last over, kept her nerve. The opposition did not.

There will be plenty of inquiries about the team's batting performance. They possibly have been pursuing 270 or 280 with Sri Lanka appearing at ease on 159 for four in the 30th innings segment, but rather the target was significantly less.

Nevertheless, the batting side lacked aggression from the very beginning, making runs at under 2.5 scoring rate during the powerplay, suffering a early batting collapse, and ultimately making themselves overwhelming to achieve.

But no matter what problems there are with their batting, if they had seized their opportunities in the field, that 203-run objective would have been significantly less.

It needed them three tries to terminate the 72-run stand second-wicket collaboration, with wicketkeeper Nigar Sultana not managing to hold a tough opportunity while keeping to remove Hasini Perera on her score of 23 before Athapaththu got a reprieve from a caught and bowled chance opportunity against Rabeya.

Perera was spilled further on 55 runs and her score of 63, the latter chance flying right to Rubya Haider Jhilik at cover field, before finally being given out leg before wicket by Shorna Akter as she tried to increase the tempo with teammates getting out beside her.

Later in the batting effort, there was also a missed stumping and a failed run-out, although the latter was a slightly regrettable, with Rubya Haider substituting with the gloves following an physical problem to Joty.

Regrettably for Bangladesh, such fielding issues are far from a single occurrence. They've missed 14 chances from a available 27 at this competition and boast the lowest catching success rate (48.1%) of the competing sides.

They are a side who are typically moving in the proper way – they are participating in just their second ODI World Cup after all – but poor fielding is a glaring concern which requires focus.