Shakib, Mustafizur star on comeback as Bangladesh go 4-0 up against Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe again got close to Bangladesh’s total but couldn’t quite get the job done. This time in Dhaka, Bangladesh beat them by five runs to extend their lead in the T20I series to 4-0. With big hits towards the end, tailenders Wellington Masakadza and Blessing Muzarabani got everyone excited and nervous – depending on which side you were supporting.

Then Shakib Al Hassan took the two remaining wickets in the last over, but not before Muzarabani struck him for a straight six when 13 runs were needed. Shakib finished with 4 for 35 in his first T20I in ten months. Mustafizur Rahman also returning to the side, took three wickets, while Taskin Ahmed took two and Rishad Hossain one.

Bangladesh had given Zimbabwe a massive lifeline when they collapsed from 101 for no loss to be bowled out for 143. The last ten wickets fell in 8.4 overs as the hosts failed to last all 20 overs. Luke Jongwe led the visitors’ fightback with the ball, taking 3 for 20. His third wicket got him to 64 wickets in the format, as he beat Tendai Chatara to become Zimbabwe’s highest wicket taker in T20Is.

But before all that, Tanzid Hasan and Soumya Sarkar kept the home side on top.

Tanzid went after the bowling almost on his own in the powerplay. He reached 40 off 27 balls with seven fours, leaving Soumya with little to do at the other end. Soumya faced just nine balls during the powerplay, before he opened up in the next two overs. He reverse swept Brian Bennett in the seventh over before lofting Jongwe over the covers.

At the end of the ninth over, Tanzid reached his second fifty in the series with a single off Faraz Akram, as he continued to impress in his debut series. Soon after, Tanzid and Soumya reached their hundred stand, the third by a Bangladsh opening pair in T20Is. That partnership from the openers suggested Bangladesh would get a big score. But it all went downhill pretty soon.

Both openers fell in the 12th over when Johnathan Campbell took a good catch to remove Tanzid, before Soumya missed Jongwe’s slower yorker and was trapped lbw for 41. Despite the solid platform, the rest of the batters simply didn’t give the big crowd a chance to cheer for the rest of the innings.

Towhid Hridoy, the Player of the Match in the last two matches, slogged Sikandar Raza towards deep square leg where, Bennett took a fine catch. Bennett then got into the act with his offspin in the following over. He got the ball to sneak through Shakib’s bat and pad with his first ball, before Najmul Hossain Shanto played all around a tossed-up delivery off the last ball.

Richard Ngarava removed Jaker Ali in the 17th over, before a mix-up between Rishad and Taskin. Taskin hared out of the crease but Rishad sent him back, pointing towards the midwicket fielder; but by then it was too late, and Taskin couldn’t return to his crease in time.

Jongwe, Ngarava and Muzarabani took the last three wickets to fall. In the last over, though, Zimbabwe missed a run-out chance. As Bangladesh’s last pair Tanvir Islam and Mustafizur tried to take an extra run from an overthrow, Mustafizur was well short at the non-striker’s end. Campbell, however, couldn’t parry the ball on to the stumps, much to the packed house’s amusement.

In the chase, Zimbabwe once again failed to get off to a good start. Bennett couldn’t replicate his bowling effectiveness with the bat when he fell in the first over. Taskin hurried him into a pull shot, resulting in Shakib taking the catch at mid-on. Sikandar Raza, promoting himself to No. 3, struck four boundaries in the first two overs but lasted only till the fourth over. With Raza on 17, Taskin removed him with a good-length ball that uprooted his middle stump.

Tadiwanashe Marumani, who struck Shakib for two fours in the third over, followed Raza back to the dugout in the fifth over. Shakib trapped him lbw when Marumani missed an attempted slog sweep. When Madande fell in the tenth over, missing his reverse sweep, Rishad got him lbw for 12.

Bangladesh dropped two chances after they had Zimbabwe on the ropes in the tenth over. But Hridoy dropped Campbell on 12, before Jaker spilled Ryan Burl’s skier when he was on 1. The pair combined to take 20 runs off Tanzim Hasan in the 13th over. Campbell struck a six and a four, before Burl’s clip sent the ball high into the stands above square leg.

But their brief resistance ended with Mustafizur bowling the 15th over, where he struck twice. Soumya took a fine running catch from long-on to end Burl’s stay on 19. Jongwe guided his second ball to Rishad at point to make it 94 for 6. Shakib removed Campbell in the 17th over, with Shanto taking the skier at mid-off.

In the same over that Campbell fell, Masakadza struck Shakib for a four and six. But Tanzim brought things back with six runs in the 18th over, before Mustafizur conceded just seven runs in the penultimate over, where he also removed Akram.

Tanzid, who took a good catch to remove Akram, then dropped an easier chance of Masakadza off first ball of the last over. Muzarabani struck the big six next ball, but Shakib cleverly bowled a wide one to him as Muzarabani advanced, and Jaker completed the stumping. Ngarava then got bowled next ball to relieve the home crowd.

Brief scores:
Bangladesh 143 in 19.5 overs (Tanzid Hasan 52, Soumya Sarkar 41; Sikandar Raza 1-24, Blessing Muzarabani 1-30, Richard Ngrava 2-27, Brian Benett 2-20, Luke Jongwe 3-20) beat Zimbabwe 138 in 19.4 overs (Johnathan Campbell 31; Taskin Ahmed 2-20,  Shakib Al Hasan 4-35, Mustafizur Rahman 3-19, Rishad Hossain 1-06) by five runs