Women's World Cup: Bangladesh's Sultana Singles Out Pakistan's Amin as Key Threat in Opener

Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana said that her team is wary of the threats posed by Pakistan batters Sidra Amin and Muneeba Ali ahead of their first clash in the Women’s World Cup 2025. Bangladesh are set to kick off their campaign against Pakistan on Thursday, October 2, at R.Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.

Bangladesh are set for their second appearance in the Women’s World Cup, having made their debut in the previous edition of the tournament played in 2022. Ahead of their first fixture, Sultana touched upon the threats posed by Pakistan’s in-form batters and said that they will look to just focus on their plans instead of being overawed by what’s in front of them.

“They've been playing really well. I think their batting unit has been spot on each and every game. Again, South Africa, especially Sidra Amin, Muneeba Ali, I think. I have even seen them in the qualifiers. They're in a very good touch because they played in their home ground, but still they scored a lot of runs. I guess we just wanted to keep our game plan too simple, because a particular day is very important. And we just wanted to play according to our plan and keep it more simple what we can do right now,” said Sultana in the pre-match press conference.

The Bangladesh captain further emphasised the importance of starting the tournament on a winning note to set the tone for the rest of the campaign.

“The thing which is important is tomorrow is a very important day, and each and every one, both the team wants to get a good win tomorrow to set the tone for the tournament. So, we just wanted to make fewer mistakes tomorrow, and hopefully we'll get a good match,” he added.

Bangladesh could only manage to win one match in the last edition, which coincidentally came against Pakistan. They finished in the second last spot (seventh) on the points table with just one win from seven matches, having two points. The Nigar Sultana-led side will be eager to script another win to start the tournament off to a winning note.