Marufa Akter likely to return for New Zealand contest

Bangladesh pacer Marufa Akter is all set to play against New Zealand after recovering from a muscle strain that prevented her from completing her full quota of overs against England in the ongoing ICC Women's World Cup, a game Bangladesh lost by four wickets.

Marufa, who looked impressive in her five-over spell, took two wickets (Amy Jones and Tammy Beaumont) for just 28 runs to put significant pressure on the opponent. However, due to the muscle strain that she sustained during the latter part of fifth over, she was unable to bowl later on in the match.

Bangladesh's bowling plan was disrupted due to her absence as the team struggled to take crucial breakthroughs in the middle overs. However, she is back in action in the nets ahead of Bangladesh's game against New Zealand.

"She is available tomorrow. Right now she is bowling and not feeling any kind of discomfort that suggests she might miss the game against New Zealand," a BCB official touring with the team confirmed to Cricbuzz on Thursday.

"She was ready to bowl towards the end of the England innings, but the management didn't want to take any risks," he added.

Bangladesh spinner Nahida Akter believes they can bounce back strongly against New Zealand after their defeat to England in the previous game

"The match that we lost yesterday is in the past. We can't bring it back even if we want to. Now we are focusing on the match that lies ahead. We are not thinking about any particular opponent - our plan is to bat and bowl better as a team," said Nahida.

"We played very good cricket in the last match. I think, as a bowling unit, we are doing very well. The focus will remain the same. Batters are also doing well. If one or two batters had batted a little better, maybe the score could have been higher than what we managed," she added.

Bangladesh will take on New Zealand in Barsapara Cricket Stadium at Guwahati on September 10.