Heather Knight’s unbeaten 79 guided England to a nervy four wicket victory to maintain their 100 per cent record in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bangladesh pushed England all the way in Guwahati as the three-time champions pursued their target of 179 after Sophie Ecclestone had earlier taken three for 24.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sobhana Mostary (60) and Rabeya Khan (43 not out) ensured Bangladesh posted a competitive total on a difficult batting surface, one in which England’s spinners thrived on, taking nine of their opponents 10 wickets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Marufa Akter and Fahima Khatun combined to help reduce England to 78 for five in response, but Knight, ably supported by Charlie Dean in an unbroken partnership worth 79, saw her team over the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having won the toss and electing to bowl for the second successive World Cup match, Nat Sciver-Brunt’s side made a fast start out in the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bangladesh were reduced to 25 for two inside the sixth over as Lauren Bell (one for 28) and Linsey Smith (two for 33), accounted for Rubya Haider for four and skipper Nigar Sultana Joty for a second-ball duck respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
England’s economical bowling succeeded in stifling the Tigresses’ innings and two brilliant catches from Amy Jones standing up to the stumps left Bangladesh 85 for four one ball in the 23rd over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From there, England’s spinners turned the screw on the opposition as Ritu Moni holed out to deep midwicket for five to give Dean her second dismissal, having previously accounted for Shorna Akter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Whilst wickets tumbled around her, Sobhana looked calm and composed as her maiden international fifty helped her side fight back against England’s spin barrage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ecclestone took two wickets in consecutive overs to take her wicket tally to three having removed Sharmin Akhter for 30, as Bangladesh were reduced to 130 for seven with just seven overs remaining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 26-year-old slow left-armer knocked over Fahima with a flighted delivery for seven before tempting Nahida Akter into an ill-fated drive which found Dean close in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rabeya offered valuable late-order resistance for Bangladesh, adding an unbeaten 43 from 27 balls which featured six fours and one towering six off Smith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But once Sobhana was given out LBW for a fine 108-ball 60 off the bowling of Alice Capsey (2\/31), Bangladesh were eventually bowled out for 178.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
England’s reply hit turbulence early on as Marufa Akter pinned Jones leg before wicket in the first over and then Tammy Beaumont in the seventh to leave the score 29 for two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The arrival of Sciver-Brunt looked to have steadied the ship, as, alongside Knight, who had been given reprieves from being given out caught and LBW, the pair put on 40 for the third wicket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Fahima Khatun span the game back in Bangladesh’s favour with three quick wickets, including Sciver-Brunt for a well-made 32, to leave England 78 for five.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Capsey looked assured as she and Knight took England past 100, but the 21-year-old was prized out for 20 by Shanjida Akther Maghla soon after.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Knight’s majestic, lofted drive over Maghla’s head showed she was up for the fight and when she reached her half century, England needed just 41 more to win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dean provided able support to Knight as the duo’s partnership was the highest of the match, and it was the former who sealed the game with a glorious cover drive to the boundary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Knight praised teammates Charlie Dean and Alice Capsey for keeping their nerve with the bat to help steer England to a four-wicket victory over Bangladesh in the ICC Women\u2019s Cricket World Cup 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In pursuit of a target of 179, England found themselves in bother at 78 for five thanks to Marufa Akter (2\/28) and Fahima Khatun\u2019s (3\/16) clinical display of pace and spin bowling respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Dean and Capsey were able to provide Knight, who made a match-winning 79 not out, with the support she needed to get England over the line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Capsey looked assured during her 20 before Dean\u2019s 27 not out from 56 balls showed a steely resolve that will serve England well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Knight said: \u201cI thought [Alice] played really well to form a small partnership early on. Charlie was brilliant. We knew one good partnership would get us most of the runs, and we kept things quite simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe had to park a few shots we\u2019d normally play and adjust to the surface and the accuracy of their bowling, [there wasn\u2019t] much pace on the ball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m really pleased for Charlie. She\u2019s worked hard on her batting, handled the pressure well, and that big partnership was crucial.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Knight was playing in just her fourth match since May but was able to conjure up all the skill and quality required to help her country win, a sign that she has overcome the difficult period she was going through leading up to the tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She continued: \u201cIt didn\u2019t feel very easy at the start, to be honest. It was my first proper game in the middle since May, so I was just trying to find some rhythm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI thought they bowled really well up front, they were threatening. I just tried to find a method to get through that phase. As things went on, it got a bit easier; I got used to the turn a bit more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey took a lot of pace off the ball, which made it tricky to hit through the outfield, but it did get easier as it went on, as it generally does with batting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, who replaced Knight in the role, expressed her delight at the 34-year-old\u2019s knock, which featured three reprieves from being given out caught and LBW, and is pleased to have her back in the international set-up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said: \u201c[She showed all her class and skill] absolutely. She was almost walking off a couple of times, but she stayed switched on, read the game really well, and knew exactly what she needed to do for the team. She\u2019s brilliant to have back.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sciver-Brunt, who made an important contribution of 32, admitted in an ideal world her team\u2019s chase would have been tidier, but was happy that her team found a way to win on a tricky batting surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She added: \u201cI think we did what we needed to do to get over the line. Before the tournament, we spoke as a group and agreed that not every over is going to be easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to look a bit gritty, and we\u2019ll need resilience in our skills and in the way we approach things. We did what we had to do to get over the line. It could have looked a bit better, but we\u2019re really happy to be on the winning side.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty highlighted the importance of Rabeya Khan\u2019s unbeaten 43 which helped give her side a respectable target to defend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But, after being dismissed two balls shy of their full 50 overs, Joty challenged her team to avoid being bowled out in future innings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said: \u201cI wanted to see them play till the last ball, because if we used all the balls, we could have got 12 runs more and that could have been effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think Rabeya played really well in the last over, a good cameo from her, but still, I think on this wicket, we were short of 30 runs overall.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
RESULT<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Bangladesh 178 all out in 49.4 overs (Sobhana Mostary 60, Rabeya Khan 43 not out; Sophie Ecclestone 3\/24, Charlie Dean 2\/28)<\/p>\n\n\n\n England 182\/6 in 46.1 overs (Heather Knight, 79 not out, Nat Sciver-Brunt 32; Fahima Khatun 3\/16, Marufa Akter 2\/28)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Result: England won by four wickets<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Heather Knight’s unbeaten 79 guided England to a nervy four wicket victory to maintain their 100 per cent<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[69],"class_list":["post-4302","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-cricket"],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed.jpg",1932,828,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-300x129.jpg",300,129,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-768x329.jpg",640,274,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-1024x439.jpg",640,274,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-1536x658.jpg",1536,658,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed.jpg",1932,828,false],"morenews-large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-825x575.jpg",825,575,true],"morenews-medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed-590x410.jpg",590,410,true]},"author_info":{"info":["admin"]},"category_info":"Newsbeat<\/a>","tag_info":"Newsbeat","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Heather-Knight_compressed.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4302","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4302"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4302\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4304,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4302\/revisions\/4304"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4302"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4302"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4302"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}