England had ‘belief’ in fightback says Sophia Dunkley after her side defeat Bangladesh

Sophia Dunkley insisted England are full of belief and fight after they revived their World Cup campaign to set up a semi-final against South Africa in Christchurch on Thursday.

The defending champions were on the brink of elimination after starting the tournament in New Zealand with three losses.

But four straight victories, including a 100-run win over Bangladesh yesterday, has put them into the last four.

Sophia Dunkley helped England to secure a 100-run win over Bangladesh in Wellington

‘It’s been a really good achievement to qualify from where we started,’ Dunkley said. ‘We always knew we could come back and fight for it. There’s a lot of belief and fight in our changing room.

‘To have four wins going into the semis puts us in a very strong position.’

Dunkley, who is playing in her first World Cup, hit 67 from 72 balls in Wellington as England made 234 for six. Spinners Sophie Ecclestone and Charlie Dean then took three wickets apiece to dismiss tournament debutants Bangladesh for 134.

Defeats against Australia, West Indies and South Africa had threatened Heather Knight’s side with an early exit. But yesterday’s dominant win completed a quartet of victories after England had seen off India, New Zealand and Pakistan.

‘Having the experience of those games puts us in a really good position,’ she said of the opening three losses. ‘Going into next week, we are very positive and have a lot of confidence. We know we can make history.’

After securing victory, England will now face South Africa in the semi-finals of the World Cup

After finishing third in the group, England’s clash with South Africa will be a repeat of their 2017 semi-final. Table-topping Australia, who have a 100 per cent record in the competition, take on the West Indies in the other last-four encounter.