Spinners lead England to World Cup win over Bangladesh

Women's T20 World Cup, Sharjah

England 118-7 (20 overs): Wyatt-Hodge 41 (40); Khatun 2-18

Bangladesh 97-7 (20 overs): Mostary 44 (48); Smith 2-11

England won by 21 runs

Scorecard; Tables

England opened their Women's T20 World Cup campaign with a 21-run victory over Bangladesh in Sharjah, despite an unconvincing batting performance.

The low-scoring trend of the tournament continued as Heather Knight's side successfully defended their 118-7, with Bangladesh crawling to 97-7 in response.

Spin dominated again on a slow, sluggish pitch as Linsey Smith and Charlie Dean took two wickets each.

England's batters also struggled on the surface, with opener Danni Wyatt-Hodge top-scoring with 41 but they were generally wasteful against Bangladesh's slow, wily bowlers.

Though conditions were in the bowlers' favour, England threw several wickets away by committing to an aggressive approach throughout.

Opener Maia Bouchier was caught at mid-off for 23, Nat Sciver-Brunt was lbw walking down the pitch for two, Alice Capsey was caught reverse-sweeping for nine and Wyatt-Hodge was stumped trying to hit down the ground.

Five of the wickets fell to spin with two to Ritu Moni's medium pace, and while it was not their finest innings, it did not prove too costly as England's own spinners produced an exceptionally disciplined display to bamboozle a poor Bangladesh batting line-up.

Sobhana Mostary batted brilliantly for her 44, but had little support from elsewhere as they failed to keep up with the run-rate at any stage in the face of England's consistency.

Heather Knight's England are back in action against South Africa, who also won their first match, on Monday while Bangladesh face West Indies on Thursday.

Smith stars amid batting wobble

So far in Sharjah, scores of 116, 119 and now 118 have been defended as teams learn to familiarise themselves with the tricky conditions, and England were no exception at a venue where they have never played before.

It is the lowest total they have ever defended at a T20 World Cup and while there are question marks over the batting, they have set themselves a high bar going forward with their bowling.

It was also the first time they have ever bowled 16 overs of spin and credit must be given for the selection of left-armer Linsey Smith over specialist seamer Lauren Bell.

More than half of Smith's deliveries (56%) would have hit the stumps as she plugged away with nagging accuracy and was rewarded with figures of 2-11, while she was also magnificent in the field with diving saves and the crucial run out of Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty for 15.

Smith formed a strong partnership with off-spinner Charlie Dean, who took 2-22, while there was a wicket each for Sarah Glenn and Nat Sciver-Brunt on a rare off day for Sophie Ecclestone.

Spin has been England's strength for some time and this was a clear statement they will be a force to be reckoned with in these conditions.

But with a much tougher opponent to come in South Africa, England will know their batting must improve on pitches which favour spin and have long boundaries with a slow outfield.

With so many wickets lost to attacking shots, they may have to refine their approach, which will be difficult given their much-stated desire to be aggressive.

'We will have to be adaptable' - reaction

Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana Joty: "We missed a good opportunity to beat a good side, as our bowlers did a good job.

“They started well, but we kept the game in control in the last 10. We didn’t get as many runs in the powerplay and it cost us, and I got out at the wrong time.”

Former England bowler Katherine Sciver-Brunt on BBC Test Match Special: “There's not many people in our batting line-up that know their role inside out like Danni Wyatt-Hodge does.

“They looked unsure of the surface, not sure of the slow ball and they are going to become predictable. They need to find that way of playing with intent, but without being reckless.”

England captain Heather Knight: “It was tough out there, conditions were tough for boundary hitting so we are glad to get the win. It’s not going to be beautiful or sexy all the time, if we get on these conditions again we are going to have to graft a bit.

"We will have to be adaptable on different wickets and tonight was a good clue as to what it is going to be like."