West Indies suffer heartbreak as Bangladesh confirm spot in Women's Cricket World Cup 2025

Lahore [Pakistan], April 19 (ANI): Following West Indies' heart-shattering defeat against Thailand in the final match of the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifiers 2025, Bangladesh punched their ticket to the marquee tournament, set to be held later in the year in India.
With both West Indies and Bangladesh in the hunt for the final World Cup spot as they stood level on points, a gripping finale unfolded in the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2025 on Saturday in Lahore.
West Indies needed to chase down 167 in just 10.1 overs to secure qualification against Thailand. They had a narrow margin for error. They could stretch the chase to 11 overs only if they levelled the scores at 166 and then finished it off with a six.
As the 10th over concluded, West Indies fell 11 runs short. Heading into the final two balls, the equation was clear: a four and a six were needed to keep their World Cup hopes alive. The dramatic finish ended West Indies' qualification hopes and confirmed Bangladesh's place in the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2025
Bangladesh booked their berth in the tournament after a sizzling Qualifier campaign where they won three out of five matches. They joined the hosts, Pakistan, as the two teams that sealed their spot from the Qualifier.
Bangladesh progressed on the basis of a superior Net Run Rate (a difference of 0.013) than the West Indies, after the latter missed out on qualification by the finest of margins. This will mark their second appearance at the marquee ICC Women's event, following their finish as the second-last team in the 2022 edition in New Zealand.
Bangladesh kicked off their campaign with a mammoth 178-run win against Thailand. The Nigar Sultana Joty-led side topped it up by defeating Ireland by two wickets in a closely-contested affair and then came out on top against Scotland to make it three wins on the trot to kickstart their campaign with flying colours.
The fourth game saw Bangladesh stumble against the West Indies, leaving them in need of a win against Pakistan in their final game to seal the second spot available. After Bangladesh's defeat against Pakistan, West Indies' hopes of qualification remained alive.
Skipper Joty, alongside Sharmin Akhter and Ritu Moni, were the standout performers with the bat, while Fahima Khatun, Jannatul Ferdus and Rabeya Khan played a starring role with the ball throughout the campaign. (ANI)