It was a game that shouldn’t have been the struggle it was, but South Africa seldom does things the easy way.

All the adrenaline from the India win was quickly tranquilised by a spirited Bangladesh batting and bowling effort, but the Proteas found a way to dig out an identical three-wicket win in a women’s World Cup league fixture at the ACA-VDCA Stadium here on Monday.

Chasing 233, South Africa stumbled early, with Tazmin Brits falling for a second consecutive duck. Laura Wolvaardt and Anneke Bosch added 55 runs before their quick dismissals gave Bangladesh hopes of an unlikely win.

Annerie Dercksen and Sinalo Jafta were sent back early, but Marizanne Kapp and Chloe Tryon’s 85-run stand steadied the ship. The two registered much-needed half-centuries to give their side an upper hand. They fell with 35 runs needed from 31 balls and Nadine de Klerk, as she did against India, sealed a nail-biter for South Africa.

Earlier, Bangladesh openers Fargana Hoque and Rubya Haider put 53 runs in 15 overs before the partnership was broken when the latter miscued her slog-sweep to de Klerk at mid-on. Fargana departed when a review, originally for caught-behind, saw ball tracking confirm that she was trapped in front of the wicket instead.

Sharmin Akhter and Nigar Sultana added 77 from 91 balls. With the run rate less than four after the loss of the pair, Shorna Akter began swinging her willow.

Any invitation to find the gaps was gleefully taken, as de Klerk found out when Shorna sent the ball sailing over long-on. She also had the rub of the green when a possible run out instead saw her register a maiden half-century. Alas, Shorna anticlimactically dropped de Klerk in the penultimate over of the chase, letting what would have been a famous win slip through Bangladesh’s fingers.

The scores: Bangladesh 232/6 in 50 overs (Shorna Akter 51 n.o., Sharmin Akhter 50, Nigar Sultana 32, Fargana Hoque 30) lost to South Africa 235/7 in 49.3 overs (Chloe Tryon 62, Marizanne Kapp 56, Nadine de Klerk 37 n.o., Laura Wolvaardt 31).

Toss: Bangladesh; PoM: Tryon.

South Africa, fresh from the morale-boosting win against India, will look to build on the momentum when it takes on a persistent Bangladesh in the Women’s ODI World Cup at the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Monday.

The Proteas, who were humiliated by a 10-wicket thrashing by England in their opening match, have bounced back in sublime fashion, with a dominant victory against New Zealand followed by a nail-biter triumph over India on Thursday.

While Richa Ghosh made a mockery of the versatile South African bowling order, they still managed to strike when it mattered. Proteas’ batting muscle makes them automatic favourites against Bangladesh, a side that’s not managed to roar as loudly with the bat as it has with the ball.

Medium pacer Marufa Akter has made inroads with the new ball, while left-arm spinner Nahida Akter and the legspin duo of Fahima Khatun and Rabeya Khan have largely kept a tight leash on the opposition.

That said, Marufa’s lack of endurance to sustain the bite she manages early is a concern and something South Africa will be eager to exploit. The Proteas’ famed top-order — Laura Wolvaardt, Tazmin Brits and Marizanne Kapp — will hope to have a good game, with their inconsistencies often landing the side in a pickle.

It remains to be seen whether seam-bowling all-rounder Annerie Dercksen finally gets a game in this campaign.

Bangladesh will want to see better returns from Nigar Sultana Joty, who has had a rather quiet run in the showpiece. Performances from Shorna Akter, Rubya Haider and Sobhana Mostary have been encouraging. Partnerships are the need of the hour for the side, against a lethal Protean attack led by Kapp and Nonkululeko Mlaba.

After a blitz from Nadine de Klerk stole a win from under India’s feet against South Africa at the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Visakhapatnam a few days ago, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur sat quietly, processing the downward spiral.

It was a game India’s famed batting line-up should have put to bed before the fielding effort began.

But the top-order, like it did against Sri Lanka (in Guwahati) and Pakistan (in Colombo), combusted meekly. There’s barely any turnaround time, with defending champion Australia calling here on Sunday.

Centuries from Ashleigh Gardner and Beth Mooney had saved the top-ranked side the blushes against New Zealand and Pakistan, proving the value of having 11 players who can bat. That said, captain and opening bat Alyssa Healy doesn’t think the team will pick being conservative early on.

“The PowerPlay still plays a crucial role in this World Cup. It seems to be throughout the middle overs that some sides have been managing to squeeze oppositions, but I still think if you can get off to a good start and set a platform, that’s going to be really important to putting a good total out there or chasing something down. There’s a bit of a fine balance in that regard,” she explained.

India, too, has been propped up by middle-order rescue acts in every game so far. Worryingly, its top five averages lower (23.13) than SENA teams (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) — and therein lies the problem.

Australia’s versatile and effective bowling attack might not allow a recovery if the top five fail again. An alarming number of dot balls (127 balls vs Sri Lanka, 172 vs Pakistan, 184 vs South Africa) is another concern for the Women in Blue.

It might be worth revisiting the team combination ahead of the crucial fixture as India operates with only five proper bowling options. Harmanpreet came in as the sixth in the game against South Africa.

Against an Aussie arsenal that’s packed in both departments, India might want to bring in reinforcements.