Toby Marshall
Bangladesh won a thrilling second one-day international against Ireland by three wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the series at Chelmsford. In a rain-curtailed match reduced to 45 overs per side, Bangladesh chased down 320 runs with three balls to spare, thanks to the unbeaten 36-run knock by Mushfiqur Rahim. Najmul Hossain Shanto’s 117 and Towhid Hridoy’s 68 set up the chase for Bangladesh.
Harry Tector’s unbeaten 140 off 113 balls, which included a record 10 sixes for an Ireland player in an ODI, and George Dockrell’s unbeaten 74 off 47 helped Ireland post 319-6. The third and final match of the series will be played on Sunday at the same venue. Ireland will participate in a 10-team qualifying tournament in Zimbabwe next month as they needed to win the series 3-0 to retain hope of automatic World Cup qualification.
Ireland overcame an early setback to post an impressive total. Both openers fell early, leaving the team at 16-2, but Tector and Balbirnie built a recovery partnership. Although the middle order lost wickets, Tector and Dockrell played a crucial role in providing a strong finish to the innings.
Stirling was given out on review after inside-edging behind, while Doheny also fell early. Despite the setbacks, Balbirnie and Tector bided their time, with Tector eventually finding his rhythm and reaching his half-century off 54 balls with three sixes in four balls off Taijul Islam.
Balbirnie fell soon after, but Tucker and Tector continued to push the scoring rate. Tector smashed ten sixes during his innings, a new record for an Ireland player in an ODI, before falling for a career-best 140. Ireland ended their innings on 319-6.
Najmul Hossain Shanto played a brilliant innings, scoring 117 runs off 93 balls with, setting up a great position for the visiting team. He partnered with Shakib for 61 runs and Towhid Hridoy for 131, who also played an important role by scoring 68. However, Mushfiqur had to bat with Bangladesh’s long tail towards the end of the match, especially after Mehidy Hasan got out in the 40th over.
Taijul was eventually dismissed by Josh Little in the penultimate over, with Shoriful Islam coming in to bat. Adair delivered two excellent full deliveries, succeeded by a full toss that was taken by a fielder on the deep square-leg boundary. However, Mushfiqur got a no-ball for the delivery being over his waist, before hitting the free hit with a paddle scoop to secure victory for Bangladesh.
The team had a difficult start, losing Tamim and Litton Das early, but Shanto and Shakib’s partnership seemed promising until Shakib was dismissed in the 17th over. Hridoy played a supporting role to Shanto and hit some big shots himself, before getting out to Dockrell in the 34th over. Shanto also got dismissed soon after completing his century, but Mushfiqur held his nerves and saw the team through to victory.
Continuing his impressive run, Kevin Sinclair showcased his talent by taking 4 wickets for just 24 runs in the first innings. Additionally, debutant Alick Athanaze displayed maturity with the bat, scoring a remarkable 64 runs off 45 balls.
Afghanistan showcased an impressive batting performance, spearheaded by Ibrahim Zadran's exceptional knock of 98 runs and Rahmat Shah's valuable contribution of 55 runs. Their efforts powered Afghanistan to a convincing 6-wicket victory over Sri Lanka, securing a crucial 1-0 lead in the series.
