Pakistan win nail-biting third T20I to whitewash Bangladesh at their home

DHAKA: Mohammad Nawaz struck a boundary off last ball to help Pakistan win a nail-biting third T20I by five wickets to whitewash Bangladesh 3-0 at their home.

The third contest entered an interesting phase after Bangladesh contained Pakistani batters in last two overs. Eight runs were required off the last over when Bangladeshi skipper Mahmudullah came to bowl.

Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was making his comeback after a long hiatus, missed the first ball followed by his wicket at deep midwicket. His partner Haider Ali, who was playing on 45, got out on just the next ball to give Mahmudullah a hat-trick chance.

Iftikhar Ahmed saved Pakistan by hitting a six after which they needed two off two balls. Mahmudullah once again made comeback by picking up Iftikhar in a pressure situation. But, Nawaz struck the only boundary to hand Pakistan a nervous victory.

Mohammad Rizwan made 40 runs off 43 balls including two boundaries and a six.

Mahmudullah bagged three wickets, while Shohidul Islam and Aminul Islam shared a wicket apiece.

Earlier, Pakistani bowlers got hold of Bangladesh as they managed to score just 124-7 in 20 overs.

In a dead rubber contest, Bangladesh decided to bat first after winning the toss. Their opener Mohammad Naim was the only prominent run-scorer as he scored 47 runs off 50 balls including two boundaries and a six. He fought well but Bangladesh fell to a paltry total.

Shamim Hossain made 22 runs off 23 balls with the help of four boundaries. Afif Hussain scored 20 runs spread over two sixes.

For Pakistan, Mohammad Wasim Jr and Usman Qadir bagged two wickets each while Shahnawaz Dahani and Haris Rauf shared a wicket apiece.