Charlotte Edwards scored a half-century to set up England's easy win over Bangladesh in Bengaluru

English women coast to victory

England coasted past Bangladesh in a group-B Women’s World Twenty20 fixture, held at the Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Thursday. The 36-run win helped England start its campaign on a bright note, while Bangladesh sunk to its second-straight defeat.

Opting to bat, England made 153 for seven in its 20 overs, without ever feeling the need to step on the gas. Skipper Charlotte Edwards stroked her way to a 51-ball 60 — a knock characterised by elegance, rather than power.

Charlotte, in the company of fellow opener Tammy Beaumont (18, 14b) and Natalie Sciver (27, 22b), took England to the 50-run mark in the seventh over and the 100 milestone in a healthy 14.4 overs.

Charlotte’s pleasing innings came to an end in the 18th over, leaving the task of giving the total a final push to the lower-order batters.

The Bangladesh chase, similar to proceedings witnessed during the side’s 72-run loss to India on Tuesday, lacked purpose.

At the post-match press conference, Bangladesh captain Jahanara Alam stated that she was pleased that her players made 26 runs more than what the team managed against India, but this was just a small victory in the grand scheme of things.

The scores: England 153 for seven in 20 overs (Charlotte Edwards 60, Natalie Sciver 27, Jahanara Alam three for 32) bt Bangladesh 117 for six in 20 overs (Nigar Sultana 35, Salma Khatun 32 n.o., Anya Shrubsole two for 27).