Bangladesh fought hard in the 2025 ICC Women’s World Cup, losing three close contests and finishing with a single win, but their performances hinted at how far they have come on the global stage. Team’s top-scorer Sharmin Akter Supta reflected on the campaign in an exclusive interview with The Daily Star’s Abdullah Al Mehdi, sharing her thoughts on the missed opportunities, the team’s progress, and what lies ahead for women’s cricket in Bangladesh. The excerpts of the conversation are as follows:
The Daily Star (DS): If you zoom out, what’s your biggest takeaway from the whole experience of late?
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Sharmin Akter Supta (SAS): This was our second time participating in an ODI World Cup. In terms of experience, you see that a team like South Africa has been playing in the World Cup for many years. But in the last two or three years, they’ve been performing much better.
I feel that our time has come to play the knockout stage matches. When we first went, we were very new; we had no experience. Even our management and every player were very excited. But this time, I felt that we were capable in many ways. We could have planned a bit better, or shown a little more courage, or, if we had a bit more match experience, we might have played in the knockout stage this time.
I feel it’s time we start believing that if we plan properly, we should always aim to reach the knockout stage and win the World Cup soon. It’s no longer the time to think about just playing well, or winning two or three matches.
DS: Losing three matches by such small margins must sting. Was there one defining factor that separated you from the winning teams?
SAS: I feel that in those games, those teams got away due to their experience. We were not far behind in terms of skill, effort, or hard work. We haven’t played that many matches in those pressure situations. We got that opportunity in the World Cup, but we failed.
The regret remains that we lost three close matches, and one of those opponents are playing the final. But one thing I liked about the girls is that, even in some matches where we knew we were losing, we approached them with the same patience, hard work, and morale. This shows great professionalism.
DS: Could you revisit the Sri Lanka game, where you were cruising and then had to retire hurt after a fifty.
SAS: My cramp actually started long before I went out of the field. I tried hard and struggled to keep myself motivated.
I never thought we would lose that match. I still regret that if the cramp had happened an hour later, it would have been better, or even if I had gotten out earlier, I would have felt some consolation. That was a very bad day. I think the girls couldn’t sleep properly for a day after that. It will remain our most heartbreaking memory.
I think we played bad cricket in the last five overs. In the scenario we were in, we should have won the match two overs earlier. But there’s a lot to learn from it, which we can use to win the close matches next time.
DS: How impactful have the youngsters Marufa Akter, Shorna Khatun, or Rabeya Khan been at the World Cup?
SAS: Shorna, Marufa, and Rabeya are assets for the next generation of Bangladesh. They are very talented players. I believe they are players who can dominate in the World Cup. They have that capability. I have faith that they are the kind of players who can win the World Cup for Bangladesh. I also believe the same as our [board] president, that this team will quickly reach a big level.
DS: Without the best of preparation, did you feel you lacked that international exposure in the lead-up?
SAS: We had normal match practice where we played with the boys and amongst ourselves, but international matches are different. You get to face many situations in international cricket. If we had faced them before, we’d have some information when that situation comes again. So, that gap was there; it can’t be denied.
DS: You were Bangladesh’s top scorer, so how did you fare as per your own expectations?
SA: I feel I couldn’t fully meet my expectations. I had the desire to be the highest run-scorer, as I was in the last three or four series for the team. I wanted to contribute the most to the team. I feel I couldn’t do as much as expected. Another thing is that I feel I couldn’t play at my expected strike rate. My goal was to play at a strike rate between 75 and 80, something which I did last year.
DS: What are the major areas for improvement? What have you felt about the approach of the top order?
SA: I feel that every country has its own strengths and strategies. Given the condition of the wickets we grew up playing on in our country, we have tried to play according to our strengths. You will notice that other countries are ahead of us in terms of strength, power, and fitness. They try to maximise runs in the powerplay.
Since we have fewer power-hitters, or haven’t developed that way yet, we have tried to stick to our strengths.
But yes, the top order definitely has a lot of room to develop and has many opportunities.
DS: It was noted in the recent past that when captain Nigar Sultana Joty does not score, the team total is not good enough. What was your assessment since this time Joty did not score in most of the matches?
SA: I don’t think the team should only depend on Joty or me. And if you look at Sobhana Mostary, she didn’t get enough chances in the last World Cup, but she played very well in this World Cup. I think she is one of those playing very good cricket.
Our team doesn’t depend on just one person anymore. One person scoring runs can only get you to 200 or 250.
The contribution of everyone in the team has increased. The fact that we are getting totals near 200 or 200-plus in recent cricket shows that everyone is contributing.
DS: Looking beyond this tournament, what makes you excited about the trajectory of women’s cricket in Bangladesh?
SAS: I feel that our women’s cricket team is very hard-working. Besides being born naturally hardworking and patient, the women in Bangladesh, especially in the sports sector—be it football, cricket, handball—all are progressing a lot. The way the BCB is now taking initiative, if this continues to increase, I think the progress of Bangladesh women’s cricket will be much more visible very soon.