Bangladesh women tune up further in Colombo

Bangladesh A team beat their Sri Lankan counterparts by 10 runs in the third T20 of the five-match series in Colombo yesterday, winning the series with two games left to play.

The visitors have continued to field a starting eleven totally resembling their national team, treating the series as a tune-up for next month's T20 World Cup -- scheduled to begin on October 3 in the UAE.

At the SSC Ground, opting to bat, Bangladesh raced off the blocks early in the Powerplay, as Dilara Akter (13) and Sathi Rani composed 28 runs in 17 balls. In-form Sobhana Mostary fell cheaply afterwards, but the visitors -- with Sathi in the middle alongside the experienced Nigar Sultana Joty -- kept the scoreboard ticking.

However, once Malsha Shehani dismissed Sathi (26) in the eighth over -- she would go on to pick four wickets -- it triggered a batting collapse from 54-2. The visitors crumbled to 71-7 but courtesy of No. 5 batter Ritu Moni's unbeaten 25 -- ending up being decisive -- they finished on 97-9 in 20 overs.

In defence, the pace-spin duo of the Akters -- Marufa and Nahida -- did not allow the hosts to gain early momentum, reducing them to 19-3 in six overs. The asking rate kept getting the better of Sri Lanka, who ended up on 87-8 in 20 overs. Marufa, Nahida, and Rabeya Khan took two wickets apiece.

The two teams will face off in the fourth and penultimate match at the Thurstan College Ground in Colombo on Tuesday.