Pakistan down Bangladesh in T20I series opener

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Pakistan have defeated Bangladesh by four wickets in a low-scoring thriller at Dhaka's Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium in the first T20I of the three-match series.

The Men in Green chased down the total for the loss of six wickets in the last over after bowlers restricted the home side to 127/7.

 

Pakistan lead 1-0 in the T20I series!

A great finish as Pakistan chase down 32 runs in the last three overs with 4 balls to spare!#BANvPAK pic.twitter.com/9jCIJXP3sh

— Cricket Pakistan (@cricketpakcompk) November 19, 2021

 

The decision to bat first by the Bangladesh captain Mahmudullah was not fruitful as the home side lost the top three batters in the powerplay.

Hasan Ali got rid of Mohammad Naim (1) on the first ball of his spell while Mohammad Wasim dismissed Saif Hasan (1) and Najmul Hossain Shanto (7) in his consecutive overs.

Afif Hossain hold one end and continued to chip in singles. Meanwhile, all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz rattled the stumps of Mahmudullah (6).

On the other hand, leg-spinner Shadab Khan got the better of Afif in the 13th over. The left-handed batter scored 36 runs off 34 balls, powered by two fours and as many sixes.

Wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan and all-rounder Mahedi Hasan provided some relief for the home side. For the sixth-wicket stand, the duo added 35 runs off 24 balls. 

Mahedi, being the aggressive one, made undefeated 30 in 20 balls while Nurul scored 22-ball 28. Bangladesh only managed to score 127/7 in 20 overs.

Hasan was the pick of the bowlers for Pakistan, bagging figures of 3/22 while Wasim took two for 24.

 

After much criticism, Hasan Ali has stepped up and delivered straight away. Bowling stats today:

4 overs
22 runs conceded
3 wickets
5.5 economy#BANvPAK pic.twitter.com/T2SWmBX4MT

— Cricket Pakistan (@cricketpakcompk) November 19, 2021

 

In return, the Men in Green lost both of their in-form openers Mohammad Rizwan and captain Babar Azam early.

Rizwan (11) was clean bowled by pacer Mustafizur Rahman while Babar (8) tried to run one down to the third man but an inside edge dragged the bowl onto the stumps.

Young batter Haider Ali (0) couldn't do wonders on his return. While trying to slog-sweep Mahedi Hasan, he completely missed the line and the ball hit his pads.

Meanwhile, experienced all-rounder Shoaib Malik was lazy after the ball went back to the keeper Nurul Hasan on the bounce. He was strolling outside his crease when Nurul threw it back onto the stumps and the 39-year-old got run out in a most comical way. Pakistan scored 24/4 after the conclusion of powerplay.

The onus of rebuilding was on the two lefties, Fakhar Zaman and Khushdil Shah. The duo took the responsibility and added 54 runs but Bangladesh came back in the match after Taskin dismissed Fakhar. Zaman looked compact but only scored 34 off 36 balls. He hit four boundaries.

Pakistan pinned hopes on Khushdil to take the match till the end but he fell to Shoriful Islam in the 17th over. He scored 35-ball 34, powered by three fours and a six.

All-rounders Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan completed the chase for Pakistan with their power-hitting. Shadab scored 10-ball 21* while Nawaz made 18 off 10. 

For Bangladesh, Taskin was the pick of the bowlers, claiming figures of 2/31.

The second T20I of the series will be played at the same venue tomorrow.