Bangladesh has secured a record victory against Pakistan. Despite a scheduled 40-minute break for Iftar, the Tigers finished the match even before it. Tamim and Shanto effortlessly chased down Pakistan’s modest target of 114 runs in just 15.1 overs.
Earlier, on Wednesday (March 11), Pakistan batted first after losing the toss at Mirpur. Although Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman bowled economically at the start of the innings, they couldn’t find any wickets. Captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz brought himself into the attack in the seventh over, but still, no breakthrough came. In the last over of the powerplay, Miraz replaced Taskin with Nahid Rana, and that’s when the ‘Rana Show’ began.
Nahid struck immediately, dismissing Sahibzada Farhan (27) off the last ball of his first over, caught by Afif Hossain at point. This wicket broke Pakistan’s 41-run opening partnership. The young pacer then made history by picking up a wicket in each of his subsequent four overs. He sent Shyamal Hossain, Maz Sadakat, Mohammad Rizwan, and Salman Ali Agha back to the pavilion one by one, completing his maiden five-wicket haul (fifer) in his ODI career. Rizwan and Salman virtually saw stars in the face of Nahid Rana’s bounce and pace on the Mirpur pitch.
Following Nahid’s destruction, Captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz further dismantled the Pakistani lineup. In the 19th over, he had Abdul Samad caught by Litton and then dismissed Hossain Talat and Shaheen Shah Afridi. This left Pakistan reeling at just 82 runs for 9 wickets, facing the prospect of being all out for under 100. However, a fighting 32-run partnership for the last wicket between Faheem Ashraf and Abrar Ahmed somewhat mitigated their embarrassment. Faheem Ashraf was the top scorer for Pakistan with 37 runs. Nahid Rana finished with figures of 5 wickets for 24 runs for Bangladesh.