Australia secured a dominant 10-wicket victory over Bangladesh to become the first team to qualify for the semi-finals of the ongoing Women’s World Cup at Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Thursday.

Bangladesh began the tournament with a thrilling win against Pakistan and showed promise against England and South Africa, but consecutive losses have left Nigar Sultana Jyoti’s side on the brink of elimination. Today, facing the mighty Australians, Bangladesh could not keep their semi-final hopes alive.

After winning the toss, Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana Joty opted to bat first. The team, relying heavily on Sobhna Mostari’s fighting innings, posted 198 for 9. Sobhna remained unbeaten on 66 off 80 balls, marking Bangladesh’s first-ever fifty against Australia in Women’s ODIs. Despite five dropped catches by the world champions, Bangladesh could not capitalise fully, with other batters failing to provide support.

Earlier, the openers gave Bangladesh a promising start, but the innings lost momentum quickly. Farzana fell for 8 off 24 balls at 32 runs, while Jhilik contributed 44 from 59 deliveries. Captain Joty again could not convert her start into a big score, leaving the team in danger of being bowled out for under 150 before Sobhna’s heroic knock stabilized the innings.

In reply, Australia chased down the target effortlessly without losing a wicket in 24.5 overs. Alyssa Healy scored an unbeaten 113 off 77 balls, marking her second consecutive century of the tournament, while openers Litchfield contributed 84 off 72 balls.

Bangladesh’s bowlers had limited success, with Ashley Gardner, Annabel Sutherland, Alida King and Georgia Wareham taking two wickets each and Megan Scott claiming one. Despite some sloppy fielding that included at least five missed catches, Australia dominated the match from start to finish.

With this win, Australia remains unbeaten and has firmly established themselves as semi-final contenders, while Bangladesh must now win all remaining matches to have any chance of progressing.