Asia Cup 2023
Bangladesh VS Afghanistan Played at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, Pakistan
Bangladesh 334/5 (Mehedy Hasan Miraz 112, Nazmul Hasan Shanto 104, Shakib Al Hasan 32*, Mushfiqur Rahim 25, Mujeeb Ur Rahman 1/62, Mohammad Nabi 0/50, Rashid Khan 0/66, Fazal Haq Farooqi 0/53)
Afghanistan 245 All Out in 44.3 Overs (Ibrahim Zadran 75, Hashmatullah Shahidi 51, Rahmat Shah 33, Taskin Ahmed 4.44, Shoriful Islam 3/36)
Bangladesh won by 89 Runs. Player of the Match: Mehedy Hasan Meraz
Losing the first match by 5 wickets against Sri Lanka the match against Afghanistan turned into a do or die encounter for Bangladesh. Like wounded tigers team Bangladesh bounced back with vengeance.
Firing in all cylinders a changed Bangladesh batting brilliantly set an almost unassailable 335 runs target for Afghanistan on a hot humid day at Lahore. Taskin (4/44) and Shoriful (3/36) bowling brilliantly in tandem wrapped up Afghan innings by 245. Bangladesh winning big by 89 runs all but secured a position in the group of four. Afghanistan can only go through if they can beat Sri Lanka by a huge margin. Even a win by narrower margin will let Bangladesh and Sri Lanka advancing.
Bangladesh was lucky with the coin. Batting first on a hot day gave them great advantage. Bangladesh appeared with their plan B after the reversal of the first match. They appeared with three changes. Afif Hossain and Shamim Hossain were added to bolster late middle order batting and Hasan Mahmood replaced out of form Mustafizur Rahman. Mehedy Hasan Miraj was also risked opening the innings with Shekh Naim relieving debutant Tanzid Tamim. The gamble worked and Mehedy again proving his quality rocked scoring 112 glittering like gold innings. Him and inform Shanto (104) putting together 194 runs for the third wicket led Bangladesh scoring very impressive 334/5. Afghanistan in reply could reach 245. Bangladesh won big by 89 runs.
Lot of questions were being genuinely asked after the dismal performance of Bangladesh in the first match. Why Bangladesh risked playing an in experienced opening pair in the first match? Why all four top order batsmen were left-handed? Why Afif was not included to bolster weak late order? All these were mended yesterday, and the positive dividends were achieved. Bangladesh learned bitter lesson from match one and returned brilliantly from the edge of exit.
The opening pair counter attacking Fazal Farooqi and Mujeeb right from the onset of the innings let out a warning signal for not only Afghanistan but also other opponents those will come on the way. Naim started well yet again but fell after scoring a brief bright innings of 28 falling to a carrom ball of Mujeeb. Towhid Hridoy however could not score – a rare failure in his short career.
Miraz was looking great in his changed role and was striking gold. His brilliant partnership with Shanto now in red hot form changed the complexion of the match. The 194 runs the pair scored set the foundation of a huge 334/5. Miraz retired after scoring 112 in 119 deliveries punctuated with 7 fours and 3 sixes. Shanto after his painstaking 89 in the first match scored 104 in 105 balls. Shakib with unbeaten 32 and Mushfique 25 also contributed. From the bowling figures of top Afghan bowlers one can get how relentless was Bengal tiger’s counterattack. It is very rare that Afghan bowlers get such treatment. Rashid (0/66), Nabi (0/53), Mujeeb (1/62). It appeared that Bangladesh did their homework well against Afghan spinners.
Bangladesh still had to bowl and field well. At Lahore wicket such score was successfully chased by Pakistan against Australia in the recent past. Bangladesh got the early break through getting rid of flamboyant Ramanullah Gurbaz. Ibrahim Zadran (75), Ramat Shah (33) and Hashmatullah Shahidi (51) tried to resist. But Taskin (4/44) and Shoriful (3/36) proved too good for the Afghans. Eventually Afghan innings was wrapped up for 245. The big win by 89 runs appears enough for Bangladesh advancing to the group of four. Entire nation had a sigh of relief. A loss could have triggered disaster for Bangladesh raising so many embarrassing questions. Hope Bangladesh will move on and live up to the great expectations.
BDST: 0918 HRS, SEP 04, 2023
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