In the opening match of the day at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala, Bangladesh won the toss. The Bangladeshi tigers made the decision to go out first. Bangladesh’s spinners limit Afghanistan to 156 runs by bowling to their line and length. Shakib Al Hasan, the team’s captain, excelled as always for Bangladesh. Here is a summary of the opening frames.
A balanced powerplay
The batters had an early lead on the powerplay, which was evenly matched. Early on, Ibrahim Zadram and Rahmanullah Gurbaz attacked the Bangladeshi pacers. Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, and Mustafizur Rahman hardly bothered the openers. Shakib entered the attack during the seventh over. The captain dismissed Ibrahim Zadran in just his second over, ending the opening partnership’s 50-run opening stand. There were a few quick 30 run partnerships. Gurbaz reached 1,000 runs in ODIs during these partnerships, becoming him the fourth-youngest wicketkeeper to do so.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Bangladeshi bowlers take control of the innings
After the powerplay, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Shakib both dismissed the Afghan captain, Hashmatullah Shahidi, along with Rahmat Shah. Shahidi was dismissed in the 25th over by Mehidy Hasan’s wicket-first bowling. Mustafizur dismissed Gurbaz in the very next over, bowling the second straight wicket-maiden over.
Shakib returned for his third spell in the 29th over and took a wicket with his first delivery. Najibullah Zadran was removed by Bangladesh’s skipper after he claimed his third game-high wicket. In the subsequent over, Taskin Ahmed bowled Mohammad Nabi.
At number 7, Azmatullah Omarzai attempted to lend some support to the innings but was dismissed after only hitting 22 runs in 20 balls. Shoriful Islam, a left-arm spinner, bowled him. Mehidy Hasan had taken his second wicket by plucking Rashid Khan’s before Omarzai was removed. Mujeeb ur Rahman was eliminated by Mehidy Hasan, who also secured his third wicket of the game. Naveen-ul-Haq was out for the second wicket that Shoriful Islam acquired. Eight of the 10 wickets were taken by the Bangladeshi spinners, who completely controlled the game.
Advertisement