Tigresses finish maiden ODI WC campaign with a 100-run loss

Defending champions England claimed their place in the World Cup semifinals while finally sealing New Zealand’s fate on Sunday. A 100-run win over Bangladesh in Wellington gave England their fourth victory in succession after beginning the tournament with three defeats.
Their semifinal opponent was yet to be confirmed, with India playing South Africa in Christchurch in the final round-robin game of the Cup, but with eight points, England moved past the West Indies (7) and the White Ferns (6).
Batting first, the titleholders made a patchy 234-6 from their 50 overs before dismiss Bangladesh for 134, with spinners Sophie Ecclestone and Charlie Dean to the fore.
Sophia Dunkley’s 72-ball 67 helped the reigning World Cup champions post 234/6 at Basin Reserve and a polished bowling performance – led yet again by Sophie Ecclestone’s economical spell of 3/15 – meant Bangladesh never threatened to rein in England’s total and were bowled out for 134 in the 48th over.
All-rounder Lata Mondal top-scored for Bangladesh with 30 and openers Shamima Sultana and Sharmin Akhter made 23 apiece, but none of their batters found scoring easy to come by against England’s long list of quality bowlers.
Salma Khatun (2/46) was the pick of the Bangladesh bowlers, who combined well to make sure England couldn’t gather too much momentum throughout their innings.
England’s quest to reach the knockout stages of the tournament actually started poorly, with Danni Wyatt (6) and Knight (6) falling inside the first eight overs and the score only on 26.
Sciver and Beaumont put on 60 for the third wicket to help get England back on track, but Beaumont was dismissed by Ritu Moni with the first ball of the 25th over as Bangladesh fought back strongly.
Dunkley used her nous to guide the ball around the field during her innings, with Katherine Brunt (24*) scoring some valuable late runs to ensure England posted their winning score.
Bangladesh finish the tournament in seventh place on the standings with just one win from eight matches and a host of competitive performances.
Earlier, Dunkley helped pace England to their total during the important middle overs as Nat Sciver (40), Tammy Beaumont (33) and Amy Jones (31) provided plenty of support.
It means England has qualified for the knockout stages of the tournament, with a final four date against either Australia or South Africa awaiting Heather Knight’s in-form side later this week.
England have now won four matches on the trot, having more than made up for their slow start to the tournament with a string of impressive performances that has highlighted the depth in their squad.