Sophia Dunkley, spinners shine as England make semi-finals after defeating Bangladesh
Spinners Ecclestone, Dean, Knight shared seven wickets between them
Spinners Ecclestone, Dean, Knight shared seven wickets between them
Scorer: K Vairavan | Commentator: Srivathsa Vennelaganti
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England were on the verge of bowing out after losing three in a row and needed to win all their remaining four games to have a chance of reaching the semis. They started off that task with a thumping of India and apart from a close finish against New Zealand, have got the job done in style. A near-perfect last four games from them. They head into the semis with a lot of confidence. Still one more spot to be finalised and that's being take care of here. Do head over there to follow it live.
Heather Knight: Really pleased, the job was to come here and get the 2 points and qualify for the semi-finals, I probably would've liked a few more runs. 250-260 but the wicket was slow and they bowled really well. She has been a real find for us over the last couple of years [Dunkley], she has matured. She hits the ball very cleanly, I have had that when playing against her in domestic cricket and really pleased she has got her first 50 in World Cups, hopefully more to come. Batters have had time in the middle. All the top 6 have had a little bit of time in the middle. It helps get used to the conditions here and also at the Hagley Oval. We will have to wait and see who we play in the semis. One eye on the NRR and one eye on looking after the bowlers and freshen them up for the semi-final. Freya did an outstanding job, she has been on the sidelines for a long time, bowling into the wind as well was impressive. She [Nasser asked whether she was available, but Knight thought it was about Brunt] is available for the semis, purely to rest her and freshen up for the semi. We will go back, have some dinner and watch the game tonight. We will happily play whoever we get given, the girls are a bit split, some want to stay here. Amy Jones isn't sleeping well, she wants to go back to Christchurch [smiles]. It shows a lot about this group on how we turned things around, not gotten down about things, shows a lot of character and I certainly would've bit your hand off a couple of weeks ago to be in this position.
Nigar Sultana Joty: Lack of building partnerships, how we started and in between we lost too many wickets. I guess it was a decent total and the wicket was very good. If the top-order could play 30-35 overs, maybe it could be different. Disappointed with the team effort but happy with the individual effort. Salma Khatun was brilliant throughout the tournament, I have to mention Nahida Akhter, Jahanara Alam and Ritu Moni as well. The last two matches Lata played brilliantly. We need to play more matches, internationals and we will learn more. We were coming here to get a lot of experience and we want to take all the positives for the future. Nowadays at home, lot of young girls want to play for Bangladesh and after this World Cup, there will be more.
Dunkley: Wasn't easy, they bowled well, we had to dig in there and get a partnership going for us to set up a platform for the end. I think I got a few starts on the way, nice to make a contribution today and build on that. Disappointed not to have finished a few games off. It was a little bit slow, for us it was about partnerships. She came in [Brunt] and was very energetic. Got me going again. I'm loving it, sometimes it's hard to remember that you are in a World Cup and it's a childhood dream. Our main job today was to get the job done. We will give it our all and really looking forward to the game.
Sophia Dunkley is the Player of the Match.
Update: Mel Jones on air informs that if South Africa get 174 against India in Christchurch, England will finish third.
Tautoru: "The way England have played, they deserve to be in the semi-finals. Hitting their straps at the right time! "
Nikhil: "Like I said earlier, Bangladesh's approach of batting out the 50 overs will not win them games against the big teams. Their bowling has been fine in all of the games, but in order to challenge teams like england and australia, it's always good to attack in order to lessen pressure!"
Ollie : "Excellent stuff, great comeback after the horror start to the tournament "
5.45pm: A practice game for England especially with the ball in the chase. Bangladesh never had any hopes of chasing this down and after a first-ball scare when there should have been a run-out, the openers decided to have some batting practice. Dots were played with regularity as the bowlers ran through their overs. The trend continued till the end of the innings. Can't blame Bangladesh too much too for they are inexperienced and are playing in their first World Cup. What it's done though it has helped England boost their NRR which should prove crucial in a few hours' time - depending on the India v South Africa game. Stay tuned for the presentation.
Ritu Moni c Cross b Davies 11 (37m 31b 1x4 0x6) SR: 35.48
"It's just a lot of belief in our change room and a lot of fight. We knew that we could come out and put on better performances."
Spinners Ecclestone, Dean, Knight shared seven wickets between them
One more win will lift England into the last four, but the opener is wary of the opposition's dangerous spinners