Bangladesh Vs Zimbabwe 1st ODI: 5 Talking Points of the Match

Bangladesh Vs Zimbabwe 1^st ODI: 5 Talking Points of the Match: Bangladesh team is in full form these season. A few months back they have successfully defeated big teams like India and South Africa at ODIs in Dhaka. This time, Bengal tigers were face to face against the minnows Zimbabwe at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka. The end result remained same once again as Bangladesh crushed Zimbabwe by 145 runs in an almost one-sided manner.

Earlier, Zimbabwe won the toss but elected to field first. By doing so, they almost lost the opportunity to put score heavy runs batting first and then put the hosts under pressure. However, they elected to field first instead and failed to restrict Bangladesh on latter’s way towards scoring commanding total of 273 runs on the board that Zimbabwe failed to chase down and eventually lost the match.

1.Mushfiqur Rahim’s Ton:

The wicket-keeper batsman was at his best today. He scored a fine knock of 107 off just 109 balls at a strike rate of 98 with 9 boundaries and an enthralling six over the ground. Rahim stood at the ground for almost 40 overs scoring heavily almost everywhere on the field. It was only at the 48^th over he got out but by then he already paved the way for a big total for his team.

2.Sabbir Rahman’s Half-Century:

Bangladesh succeeded to score 273 runs on the board after 50-overs but it would have been impossible without Sabbir’s effort. He scored a well-crafted 57 off 58 balls with 2 eye-catching sixes and 4 hit to the fence. He remained second top scorer from his side after Rahim. Both added a solid 119-runs partnership for the 5^th wicket in quick time. At one stage Bangladesh were languishing at 123/4 but these two batsmen helped the team reach a challenging total.

3.Bangladesh’s Last 30-runs off 15 balls:

When centurion Rahim was dismissed at 47.3 overs (247/3) after playing a scintillating knock of 107, not many have expected Bangladesh to cross 250-run mark but tail-enders did an amazing job with the bat adding 30 more runs in just 2.3 overs. Both Mortaza and Arafat Sunny contributed well with the bat.

4.Shakib Al Hasan’s Magic:

When Zimbabwe came out to bat many expected the visitors to put a strong fight back, but they completely surrendered to Bangladesh without showing any effort to survive. However, the real damage of Zimbabwe team was done by the experienced Shakib Al Hassan chipping in 5-wickets for 47 in his 10-over spell. He dismissed the opener Chibhabha at just 9 and then completely crushed the Zimbabwean middle order.

5.Chigumbura’s Solitary Effort:

Though, it was imminent that Bangladesh would not make too many mistakes, but Zimbabwe captain Chigumbura led the solitary battle against the hosts scoring 41 off 51 balls with 2 sixes. He didn’t score half century in the match but at least dared to spend a few minutes on the ground that others didn’t. But after 36.1 overs Zimbabwe was bowled out at 128 giving a convincing 145-run victory to Bangladesh.