Pakistan 194 for 3 (Imam 78, Rizwan 63*, Shoriful 1-24) beat Bangladesh 193 (Mushfiqur 64, Rauf 4-19, Naseem 3-34) by seven wickets
In a daunting second for Pakistan within the seventh over of Bangladesh’s innings, Naseem walked off the sector after hurting his proper shoulder. That was a results of him diving to his left working from wonderful leg to attempt to pull the ball again from close to the rope.
So changing Naseem to start out the eighth over, all it took Rauf was three balls to strike. He bowled one at a tough size whereas angling it into Naim from across the wicket, as Naim’s tried pull solely resulted in a return catch off the highest edge for Rauf.
Whereas that was bowled at 140kph, Rauf pushed it additional and cleaned Towhid Hridoy as much as begin the tenth over. It was like a dream ball: an ideal mixture of a great size and motion, angled into the right-hander at 145kph, because the ball straightened to crash into the center and off stumps. The powerplay was not even executed, and Bangladesh have been 47 for 4.
What adopted was a preventing 100-run stand between the senior pair of Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim. Regardless of the troublesome scenario they began from, the primary 44 runs took solely 61 balls to come back.
Happily for Pakistan although, Naseem was again on the sector by then as he returned to bowl the 18th over. However come the twentieth, some fortune went Shakib’s approach when on 32: off the third ball, he gloved a pull simply over the wicketkeeper, and two deliveries later, was dropped by Naseem, because the bowler could not maintain on to a forefront. It was a comparatively easy probability to his proper regardless of Naseem being in his follow-through.
A settled Shakib obtained to his fifty to start out the twenty eighth over, however precisely two overs later, he pulled a brief ball from Faheem Ashraf to deep sq. leg. Mushfiqur then obtained to his half-century two balls later, and although he rapidly added 27 with Shamim Hossain, Bangladesh collapsed from 174 for five to 193 all out.
Two of these 5 wickets went to Rauf, off successive deliveries within the thirty eighth over. Mushfiqur threw it away on 64 by skipping down and edging behind off the second ball, whereas Taskin Ahmed additionally tickled to Rizwan. Naseem wrapped the innings up with the wickets of Afif Hossain and Shoriful Islam.
Bangladesh bowlers additionally began the defence tightly. The primary 5 overs fetched solely 12 runs for Imam and Fakhar Zaman, earlier than a floodlight failure stopped play for about 20 minutes. The break appeared to work within the batters’ favour. Fakhar pulled Shoriful Islam for 4 earlier than Imam hit three boundaries off Taskin within the seventh over.
However in any other case, Shoriful had largely stored them quiet, even trapping Fakhar for 20 within the last over of the powerplay. Hasan Mahmud additionally examined the batters together with his traces. He satisfied Shakib to evaluation a not-out lbw resolution when Imam was on 16 within the eleventh over. Replays confirmed the ball was pitching exterior leg, precisely the decision Bangladesh would get when Shakib reviewed one other not-out lbw name – this break day Taskin, with Imam on 23 within the 14th over.
Comparatively sedate on 26 off his first 38 balls, Imam then obtained a fortunate boundary when Taskin misfielded at wonderful leg, solely to neatly pull Mahmud subsequent ball for six. Two overs later, Babar inside-edged Taskin for 17 off one which stored low, earlier than Imam loved additional fortune.
Given out lbw off Mehidy’s first ball – Bangladesh launched spin as late because the nineteenth over – Imam, by then on 39, reviewed and obtained it overturned, with the ball heading down the leg aspect. Imam raised his fifty with a six over midwicket off Mehidy.
His innings of 78 featured 5 fours and 4 sixes – he was lastly bowled by Mehidy – whilst Rizwan, on the different finish, ended undefeated on a affected person 63 from 79 balls regardless of having hit a 4 and 6 every off his first ten deliveries.
Pakistan subsequent play India in Colombo, with the Asia Cup’s Pakistan leg coming to an finish on Wednesday.
Himanshu Agrawal is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
