Bangladesh opened their Women’s World Cup campaign in style, chasing down Pakistan’s 130 with seven wickets and 113 balls to spare at the Premadasa Stadium on 2 September.
Rubya Haider Jilik made her ODI debut, and that too on the grand stage of the World Cup. Yet, there was no sign of nerves in her batting. She received her ODI cap against Pakistan from captain Nigar Sultana Joty, and at Colombo’s Premadasa Stadium, while chasing 130 runs, she formed a match-winning 62-run partnership with Joty. On debut, she struck a fifty and guided the team to a seven-wicket victory.
The win came with 113 balls to spare and marked Bangladesh’s second victory in the Women’s World Cup. Both wins have come against Pakistan. The last time was in the 2022 edition in Hamilton, New Zealand, when Joty’s side won by eight runs.
Chasing an easy target, Bangladesh lost two wickets for 35 runs, but Jilik’s bat steadied the innings. In the third wicket stand, she and captain Joty built a fine 62-run partnership. Though Joty departed with 33 runs still needed, Jilik stayed till the end to seal the victory. The left-hander became the third Bangladeshi batter to score a fifty on debut. She reached her fifty off 64 balls and carried her innings to an unbeaten 54 with eight boundaries. Joty contributed 23 runs off 44 balls, while Sobhana Mostary finished things off with an unbeaten 24 off 19 balls, including six fours.
Earlier, Pakistan faltered straightaway after opting to bat, losing a wicket in the very first over to Marufa. The right-arm pacer’s use of the new ball was a delight to watch — sharp seam position, off-the-pitch movement, and swing that troubled the Pakistani batters. In just the fifth ball of the innings, she bowled Omaima Sohail with a superb inswinger that rattled the leg stump.
Next delivery, she struck again, this time swinging it away from the fifth stump line to bowl Pakistan’s star batter Sidra Ameen for a golden duck. Ameen had two centuries in her last six innings.
After Marufa’s fiery start, Pakistan never recovered. Opener Muneeba Ali and No. 4 batter Ramin Shamim tried to build a stand, but Nahida Akter’s double strike sent them back. With Sidra Nawaz and Aliya Riaz also failing, Pakistan were reduced to seven down before crossing 100, effectively ending their hopes.
In the later stages, Shorna Akter bowled brilliantly. Her first three overs were all maidens, and she conceded just one boundary in her fourth. She finished with 3.3 overs, three maidens, five runs, and three wickets. On a day of batting failures for Pakistan, Nishi, Fahima, and Rabeya picked up one wicket each.
