Women's Cricket World Cup 2022: West Indies pip Bangladesh in low-scoring thriller to keep semi-final hopes alive

Shemaine Campbelle’s patient half century in a match dominated by spin bowling allowed the West Indies to a edge Bangladesh by four runs Friday in a low-scoring match decided in the final over at the Women’s Cricket World Cup. After restricting the West Indies to 140-9, Bangladesh came to the final over needing eight runs to win with only one wicket left at Mount Maunganui, New Zealand. West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor took the responsibility of bowling the last over and on the third ball knocked over the stumps of No 11 Fariha Trisna to clinch her team’s victory as Bangladesh was bowled out for 136. In the dramatic final moments of the match, West Indies fast bowler Shamilia Connell appeared to suffer a serious medical event and was taken from the Bay Oval by ambulance. Teammates and medical staff rushed to Connell’s assistance as she showed signs of distress. She received treatment from paramedics and was eventually able to walk to the ambulance. [caption id=“attachment_10469491” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  West Indies all-rounder Hayley Matthews was adjudged the Player of the Match for her haul of 4/15. Image credit: Twitter/@cricketworldcup[/caption] The incident came at a crucial stage. Bangladesh needed 14 runs from 19 balls and was relying on Nahida Akter as its last recognised batter to lead it home. A lengthy delay while Connell was treated allowed the West Indies a moment to breath in an otherwise breathless finish. “Shamilia is stable and the medical personnel are taking care of her. Hopefully she’ll pull through,” Taylor said. “It was really sad to see her go down. We probably look at the bright side, it was a chance for us to regroup and we did that. It probably changed the momentum from Bangladesh.” No team in the last five years has defended a total of 140 or less in a women’s one-day international. The last to do so was the West Indies and they managed it again despite a flawed fielding performance in which several catches were dropped. Off-spinner Hayley Matthews took 4-15 from 10 overs and was Player of the Match. The match had been heading in Bangladesh’s favor until Matthews dismissed Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana Joty for 25 and Fahima Khatun within the space of three balls in the 33rd over. Leg-spinner Afy Fletcher previously had taken three wickets with the total stuck on 60 as Bangladesh slipped from 60-2 to 60-5, ensuring the match would be close. Karishma Ramharack also contributed with her exacting off-spin, bowling her 10 overs for 15 runs. Ramharack allowed only one scoring shot, a single, from her first four overs. Bangladesh’s bowling had been equally restrictive. Spinners Salma Khatun, Akhter and Rumana Ahmed gave away runs with the utmost reluctance. The West Indies managed only 12 runs for the loss of two wickets between the 15th and 30th over and Campbelle had to navigate that period to steer her team to a modest but defensible total. Campbelle scored only 1 run from her first 25 deliveries. When she struck a four from Rumana in the 34th over, it was the first boundary the West Indies had hit in 21 overs. Until that shot, she had taken only eight runs from 57 balls. “I think it was a very close match and how our bowlers started was incredible,” Bangladesh captain Joty said. “I’m pretty disappointed with our batting. There was a lack of building partnerships.” Read all the  Latest News ****,  Trending News ****,  Cricket News ****,  Bollywood News ****,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook****,  Twitter and  Instagram****.