BAN-W vs IND-W: Harmanpreet Kaur destroys stumps after dubious LBW dismissal

With the series intriguingly poised at 1-1, India and Bangladesh locked horns in the third and final ODI on Saturday, July 22, at the Shere Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka. Nigar Sultana won the toss and chose to bat first. Powered by a half-century from Shamima Sultana and a maiden ODI hundred from Fargana Hoque, the hosts managed to reach a decent score of 225/4 in their stipulated 50 overs.

India did not start well as they lost the wickets of Shafali Verma and Yastika Bhatia inside the first five overs. The onus was on vice-captain Smriti Mandhana and Harleen Deol to take the away side closer to the target. The left-hand-right-hand combination worked wonders for India as the duo put on a solid stand of 107 runs. When Mandhana departed for 59, India still needed 87 runs to win.

Captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who had demoted herself to No. 5, stepped out to bat with a tricky job in hand. The experienced batter took her time to settle in. She got to 14, and it seemed that she would take her team through to a series-sealing victory. However, she was ruled LBW in the 34th over by Nahida Akter.

The 34-year-old Kaur attempted to sweep a fullish delivery. The ball seemed to have brushed off her arm and ricocheted off her pads to the hands of the first slip. Umpire ruled her LBW, and she was livid with the call. The experienced campaigner destroyed the stumps with her bat and also seemed to gesture to the umpire that the ball hit her bat before hitting the pads. It is interesting to note that if the ball hit the bat, then Kaur could have been given out caught as well. On the other hand, if the ball hit her arm, she could still be given out LBW.

Harmanpreet Kaur was not happy with the decision 👀#HarmanpreetKaur #IndWvsBangW #INDvWI pic.twitter.com/ZyoQ3R3Thb

— Ajay Ahire (@Ajayahire_cric) July 22, 2023

The Bangladeshi fans erupted in the stands with joy, and Harmanpreet Kaur was seen showing them a sarcastic thumbs-up while she was leaving the field.

Forgana Hoque becomes first Bangladeshi woman to score ODI century

In the first innings, opener Forgana Hoque scripted history as she became the first one to score an ODI hundred for Bangladesh Women. She achieved the feat with a boundary off Shafali Verma.

The experienced batter also has the most number of runs for Bangladesh women in international cricket. Her knock helped Bangladesh get to a fighting total as they seek a monumental series win against one of the best sides in women's cricket.