Bangladesh鈥檚 semi-final hopes in the 2024 ICC Women鈥檚 T20 World Cup are hanging by a thread following their crushing eight-wicket defeat to the West Indies in their third Group B match in Sharjah on Thursday.
Bangladesh鈥檚 long-awaited victory against Scotland in their opening game was blurred by two straight defeats.
They are now fourth in the five-team table, with only two points from three matches, and must rely on the outcomes of the other teams to advance to the knockout stage.
Their net run rate deficit in the group is so large that even a big win over South Africa鈥攁 team they have beaten only twice in 14 total matches鈥攎ay not be enough.
Meanwhile, the West Indies are topping the group with four points from three matches, edging South Africa and England, who have equal points, on net run-rate.
Bangladesh were in a must win situation against the West Indies following a 21-run loss to England in their second encounter.
However, their total of 103-8 was just not enough against the Caribbean side, who cruised to victory in just 12.5 overs.
Nigar Sultana Joty鈥檚 side showed some potential after being invited to bat. A 40-run partnership between Joty and Sobhana Mostary (16) for the third wicket took Bangladesh to 72-2 in 12.5 overs.
However, Windies spinner Karishma Ramharack鈥檚 4-17 sparked a collapse from 73-2 to 103-8, and Bangladesh could never recover from the damage perpetrated by her.
鈥業 think we had a very good start, but in the middle, we played so many dots, and then we gave them so many wickets as well, and their bowlers weren鈥檛 giving us room to play our shots,鈥� said Joty during the post-match press conference.
Despite all the facts, Joty remained optimistic and was eager to come up with a strong show against South Africa in their final group match at the Dubai International Stadium today.
鈥榃e should look to play good cricket and get a good win. It鈥檚 just a game, and we just want to play as a team and take back something to remember,鈥� she said.