Asia Cup T20: Pakistan v Bangladesh – 5 Talking Points

The Sher e Bangla stadium roared in euphoria as the determined Bangladesh beat Pakistan by 5 wickets to ensure a date with India in the finals of the Asia Cup. Overall, Bangladesh dominated the most part of the game. They bowled well and restricted the opposition for a mere 129/7 in 20 overs. Coming into chase, they had a bad start but then batted sturdily to stay in the game. The final over of the match was full of tension and drama. Sami turned the game head and the pulsating match ended in the Bangladesh’s favor eventually.

1. Bangladesh bowlers puncture Pakistan top order:

The pitch wore a barren look but that doesn’t stop the Bangla bowlers from making an impact. The Men in Green were reduced to 28/4 in 8.2 overs collectively by Al-Amin Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Arafat Sunny and Mashrafe Mortaza.  Al-Amin Hossain and Taskin looked hostile in their opening spell. The opening pair of Khurram Manzoor and Sharjeel Khan struggled to get the bat on the ball and were made to depart in successive overs by Al-Amin- Hossain and Sunny. Hafeez was unlucky to have given LBW off Mortaza. Umar Akmal was caught at deep point by Shakib al Hasan off Taskin Ahmed.

2. Shoaib Malik and Sarfraz bailout Pakistan:

After being rolled over in the first half of the first innings, Shoaib Malik (41 from 30 balls) and Sarfraz Ahmed (58 from 42 balls) engaged in the rescue act and bailed out Pakistan from another possible embarrassment. Both teamed up and weaved a 70 runs partnership before Malik was made to depart in the 17th over of the game. Sarfraz, however, carried on and reached his half-century in style with a four in the penultimate over. This stand was match-defining as it helped Pakistan stage a comeback in the match to reach a manageable score of 129/7 after 20 overs.

3. Bangladesh fumbles:

Bangladesh looked to be comfortably moving ahead on the back of Soumya Sarkar’s brilliant batting show. Chasing 130 for a place in the final, Bangladesh did not had a great start after losing an early wicket. Things came back in control after Sarkar played a counter-attacking innings. But, his departure at a crucial stage in the 14th over again swung the momentum out of balance for the hosts. Mushfiqur Rahim also followed him in the following over to make the match more interesting. A couple of overs later, Shakib al Hasan lost his wicket to Mohammad Amir and it looked that the match was slowly slipping away from Bangladesh’s grip.

4. Fortune favors the Hosts:

Bangladesh was in complete chaos after losing their track in the chase. They were down to 104/4 after 17 overs after being placed comfortably at 83/1 at one stage. There was tension everywhere but the hopes for of win was still alive with Shakib al Hasan and Mahmuddulah Riyad still at the crease. However, Amir made the crowd go silent after cleaning up Shakib. However, just when Pakistan sensed a chance, luck went out of favor for them. Skipper Mashrafe Mortaza came at the crease and crisply drove a ball at mid-off which went for a four due a misfield by Sami.  Amir came back with more aggression and fired in a bumper. Mortaza looked to backing away but the ball lobbed off from his gloves for a four. Eight lucky runs came in the over which brought down the equation to 18 from the last 12 balls.

5. Drama in the penultimate over:

Shahid Afridi turned up to Sami to bowl the penultimate over. Sami’s over, however, turned into the most dramatic over of match as he conceded 15 runs off it to throw Pakistan out of the contest. Sami started well, giving just three from the first three. But, the fast bowler, who is notorious for giving away extras, bowled a no ball which resulted in two runs. The extra ball brought a single. Three more runs came off the next two balls. However, Sami once again overstepped and this time, it proved very costly as the ball went to the fence, dashing all hopes of victory for Pakistan. A single off the last ball meant that Bangladesh needed just 3 runs to win from the last over. Mahmudullah completed the formality after smashing a six off the first ball of the next over to ensure a 5 wicket win for his team.