Women’s World Cup 2025: Six teams secure direct qualification, Bangladesh miss out

Bangladesh’s hopes of securing direct qualification for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 were beaten after an eight-wicket loss to the West Indies in the third and final ODI of the series on 24 January at Basseterre, St. Kitts (January 25 in Bangladesh).

The defeat left Bangladesh with 21 points from 24 matches ICC Women’s Championship 2022–25the same as New Zealand. However, the White Ferns edged out the Tigresses for the final ranking spot due to their superior Net Run Rate (NRR).

A missed opportunity for Bangladesh

After his victory in the second ODI against West IndiesBangladesh had raised hopes of a dramatic qualification. The final match became a crucial decider with the potential to upset the qualification race. However, Bangladesh’s batsmen fell short on the day that mattered most, failing to deliver the performance needed to secure their team a place in the ICC tournament.

With New Zealand’s qualification confirmed, the top six teams heading to the 2025 Women’s World Cup are India (hosts), Australia, England, South Africa, Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

READ also: Karishma Ramharack powers West Indies to a series win over Bangladesh in the third ODI

The qualifying tournament beckons

Bangladesh will now have to compete in the Rankings for ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 to keep their World Cup dreams alive. The six-team qualifying tournament will determine the final two spots in the World Cup, scheduled for India.

Bangladesh will enter the qualifiers as the top-ranked team, joining West Indies, Pakistan and Ireland, who finished in the bottom four of the ICC Women’s Championship. In addition, Thailand and Scotland, the two highest ranked teams outside the Championship, will also participate in the qualifiers.

The schedule and venue of the qualifying tournament is yet to be announced, leaving Bangladesh and the rest of the teams some time to prepare for the high-stakes competition.

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This article was first published in WomenCricket.coma Cricket time company