MIRPUR: Bangladesh’s left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed returned with match-winning bowling figures of 4-10 after Litton Das’ magnificent 60-runs knock to help the home side beat Afghanistan by 61-runs in the first T20I, here on Thursday.
Set to chase 156, the Afghan batting line-up failed and bowled out for a skimpy 94 in the 18th over; handing a consolidating 61 runs victory to the home side.
Afghan middle-order batter Najeebullah Zadran resisted a bit with his gritty 27 off 26 balls with the help of one boundary and as many sixes, while the rest of the batters failed to contribute significantly in the run chase.
For Bangladesh, Nasum Ahmed shine; taking four wickets for a mere 10 runs, while Shoriful Islam took three. Shakib Al Hasan, on the other hand, claimed two wickets, while Mustafizur Rahman managed to pick one.
Batting first, Bangaladesh posted a commendable 155/8 in the allotted 20 overs, thanks to the brilliant 60-runs knock of Das.
After opting to bat first, the home side had a poor start to their innings; losing two wickets for a mere 25 as Mohammad Naim and Munim Shahriar departed after scoring cheaply.
Shakib then put on a brief 22- runs partnership with Das before prior perished after scoring just five in the eighth over.
Following Shakib’s departure, the home side kept losing wickets at a consistent rate, while Das remained firm at the other end and kept the scoreboard ticking single-handedly. He scored a valiant 60 off 44 balls before walking back to the pavilion in the 17th over. The right-handed batter smashed four boundaries and two sixes in the course of his astonishing knock.
The middle-order Afif Hosain then scored crucial runs at the death; scoring 25 off 24 balls, laced with two boundaries to assist the Tigers to post 155/8 in the first innings.
For Afghanistan, Azmatullah Omarzai and Fazalhaq Farooqi took two wickets each, while Rashid Khan and Qais Ahmad struck out a batter each.
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