Bangladesh’s Nigar Sultana Chooses to Bat First Against India in Women’s Asia Cup Semifinal
In Dambulla, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana won the toss and decided to bat first against India in the first semifinal of the women’s Asia Cup on Friday.
Different Journeys to the Semifinal
India finished Group A undefeated, winning against Pakistan, Nepal, and UAE. Bangladesh secured the second spot in Group B with victories over Thailand and Malaysia but lost to Sri Lanka.
Captains’ Statements
At the toss, Nigar Sultana said, “We want to bat first. The wicket looks good. We have played two games here, the ball was coming onto the bat nicely. We want to bat freely. 2018 was a long time ago. India has been playing well. We need to work on our batting unit. If we perform collectively, we will put on a good show.”
Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur stated, “We have played really good cricket so far. Today also, we want to back ourselves. Powerplay is always important, whether you are batting first or second. They are a good side, they always have good competition. For us, we need to focus on what we have been doing so far. We have a few changes.”
Playing XI
| Bangladesh Women | India Women |
|---|---|
| Dilara Akter, Murshida Khatun, Nigar Sultana(w/c), Rumana Ahmed, Ishma Tanjim, Ritu Moni, Rabeya Khan, Shorna Akter, Nahida Akter, Jahanara Alam, Marufa Akter | Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Uma Chetry, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh(w), Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Radha Yadav, Tanuja Kanwar, Renuka Thakur Singh |
In the other semifinal, Sri Lanka is playing against Pakistan at the same venue.
Doubts Revealed
Nigar Sultana -: Nigar Sultana is the captain of the Bangladesh women’s cricket team. She leads her team in important matches like the Asia Cup.
Bat First -: Choosing to bat first means that Nigar Sultana’s team will try to score runs before the other team gets a chance to bat.
Asia Cup -: The Asia Cup is a cricket tournament where teams from Asia compete against each other. This match is part of the women’s Asia Cup.
Semifinal -: A semifinal is a match that decides which teams will go to the final. The winner of this match will play in the final to try to win the tournament.
Dambulla -: Dambulla is a city in Sri Lanka where this cricket match is being played.
Group A and Group B -: In the tournament, teams are divided into groups. India was in Group A and Bangladesh was in Group B. They played matches within their groups before reaching the semifinals.
Harmanpreet Kaur -: Harmanpreet Kaur is the captain of the Indian women’s cricket team. She leads her team in important matches like this one.
Doubleheader -: A doubleheader means two matches are played one after the other on the same day. In this case, after India vs. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka will play against Pakistan.
