Women’s ODI World Cup 2025: Australia, Bangladesh meet in lopsided contest as showpiece waits for its first upset
Australia and Bangladesh, the former chasing perfection and the latter yearning for consistency, lock horns in a league clash of the women’s ODI World Cup 2025 at the ACA-VDCA Stadium here on Thursday.
The Aussies come into this contest on the back of the most successful chase in women’s ODIs. While captain Alyssa Healy’s blistering century powered that win, the batting unit is yet to fire in unison so far.
Ashleigh Gardner and Beth Mooney registered triple-figure scores after collapses against New Zealand and Pakistan, respectively, to help Australia remain unbeaten heading into this contest. All-rounder Annabel Sutherland admitted that the team is still searching for the perfect game as it heads into the business end of the tournament.
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While a batting track awaits the teams, bowlers have been able to extract seam movement and turn from the surface here. On a day where more than 650 runs were scored, Sutherland and Shree Charani showed that the right line and length can stifle even the best in the world.
Bangladesh, riding on its superior bowling arsenal, has put up heartening performances in this edition. Against South Africa in its last game, the batting too stepped up, even if the scoring rate left a lot to be desired.
In 18-year-old Shorna Akhter, the team has found a player whose power-hitting will give it confidence in setting a competitive target or chasing one down.
While the forecast predicts clear skies, the return of heat and humidity will bring dew into play. That said, as Bangladesh almost showed on Monday, going against the grain at the toss might not be the worst thing in the world.
Will it be another case of so near yet so far for Bangladesh, or can Nigar Sultana’s spirited side finally pull off an upset in this World Cup? A slow, tantalising cracker potentially awaits.
Published on Oct 15, 2025
