Twitter Reactions: Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah star as Bangladesh annihilate PNG in Al Amerat
At one point in time, PNG were tottering at 29 for seven in 10.3 overs.
Bangladesh have all, but qualified for the Super 12s of the 2021 T20 World Cup. Mahmudullah and Co. were put under extreme pressure after their defeat against Scotland, but back-to-back wins have nearly put them through to the next round. On Thursday, the Tigers beat the Papua New Guinea by 84 runs in Al Amerat after registering the highest score in the ongoing edition of the mega event.
Mahmudullah plays a captain’s hand
The start wasn’t a handsome one for Bangladesh as Mohammad Naim, their top run-scorer against Oman, perished for a two-ball duck. Liton Das got off to a start, scoring 29 off 23, but Assad Vala cut short his stay in the middle. Shakib Al Hasan scored 46 with three sixes before he became the PNG skipper’s second victim. Mushfiqur Rahim’s torrid time in T20Is continued as he got out for five.
With the Tigers in some trouble, Mahmudullah came to the party in the second half of the innings. The captain failed to take his team home against Scotland, but made amends with a sparkling 28-ball 50 with three fours and as many sixes. He got the apt support from Afif Hossain, who hit three sixes on his way to 21. In the end it was Mohammad Saifuddin’s six-ball 19 that took the Tigers to 181.
Shakib runs through PNG
In the run-chase, PNG tried to go hell for leather only to lose wickets at regular intervals. At one point time in time, they were tottering at 29 for the seven in 10.3 overs. None of their top seven batters could get into double digits. Shakib broke the backbone of the PNG batting with three wickets. Taskin Ahmed and Saifuddin picked up two wickets apiece as the Tigers marched ahead.
Amidst the shoddy batting, Kiplin Doriga stood out. He stayed unbeaten on 46 runs off 34 balls with two fours and as many sixes. But his efforts went in vain as PNG managed 97 runs in 19.3 overs. Mustafizur Rahman had an off day after he picked up four wickets against Oman. The left-arm bowler went for 34 runs in his quota of four overs and failed to pick up a single wicket.
Here’s how the netizens reacted to Bangladesh’s win:
https://twitter.com/rafinovi_69/status/1451182166377840643
Download Our App