Nigar Sultana Joty-led Sheltech Cricket Club secured the Women's Dhaka Premier League (WDPL) title on Monday with a game in hand, having picked up seven straight wins.

But this year's edition of the WDPL has been more than just about deciding which is the best 50-over women's outfit in Dhaka's club scene as the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is hoping the tournament will help the national team get ready for the ODI World Cup qualifiers in April.

The WDPL is usually held later in the year but the BCB preponed it this year ahead of the qualifying matches, a move the BCB women's wing chairman Nazmul Abedeen Fahim commended.

"The Women's Premier League is going on and it's very important for this year because right after this the team will head to Pakistan for World Cup qualification tournament where there are teams such as West Indies and Sri Lanka," Fahim said in a BCB video message.

"Only two teams would qualify for the next 50-over World Cup and so this league is very important in terms of preparation. I think the tournament this time was well organised because it was played at the right time. Usually it is played between May-June during high temperatures when the wicket is not very good," he added.

While established national team players like Farzana Haque Pinky and Sharmin Supta are leading the run-scoring charts, their strike-rates are stuck in the 70-75 region while youngster Shorna Akter amassed 277 runs at a strike-rate of 112, which is the kind of impact that BCB is searching for.

Fahim recognised that strike-rate has been an issue in women's cricket over the years and also spoke about how the team often struggle when key players like Joty misfire.

"We have seen that the team is dependent on one or two individuals. We can talk about Nigar Sultana Joty and there have been sporadic performances from some players.

"In this year's league, we have found players we can depend upon, who have consistently scored runs. At the same time, a players' strike rate is also very important."

The Tigresses missed out on direct qualification following the 2-1 defeat in the West Indies series in January. As Sheltech lift the trophy today after their final game against Bashundhara Sports City at BKSP, the focus will shift to the qualifiers.

"After the league, the players will have a short camp which will take place on either side of Eid and then the team will depart for Pakistan. We are hoping that the team will qualify for the World Cup," Fahim added.