Tigers hit new low
West Indies confine Bangladesh to a nine-wicket defeat that would be grudgingly remembered for long by the many thousands present at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur and millions across the country, a dreadful batting display that should serve as a benchmark of overconfidence.
The large scoreboard on the eastern side of the ground said it all -- Bangladesh bowled out for 58 runs in 18.5 overs and barely an hour later, West Indies had completed the rout in 12.2 overs, even before the sun set.
It was nothing short of a proud comeback by Darren Sammy's men after West Indies had suffered a whitewash at the hands of the Tigers in 2009 but it was a complete reversal yesterday when a three-man bowling attack strangulated the home side into complete submission. It was Bangladesh's lowest-ever ODI total and the fourth lowest in World Cup history.
The middle-order batting which had only performed occasionally and seldom delivered surrendered completely and the unwillingness to fight should be considered a major worry.
After Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes failed to give their customary solid start, the slide began and the moment captain Shakib Al Hasan's uncertain 'two-shot' prod was beaten by the tall left-arm spinner Suleiman Benn, the Tigers had their fate sealed in maroon.
The way Sammy and Roach celebrated Tamim's dismissal for a duck was proof enough of their ploy to remove the best batsman of the team. Imrul Kayes, on five, followed suit and nicked a simple straight one from the medium-pacer Sammy. Junaed Siddiqui batted firmly, stroking four sweetly-timed boundaries in his 27-ball 25, which ended up being Bangladesh's highest score.
Junaed's knock showed the merit of batting first on a wicket that offered low bounce and were tailor-made for the Tigers. In between the Rajshahi left-hander's charge, Mushfiqur Rahim flicked one straight to short mid-wicket, placed precisely to ensnare the shot-a-minute Tigers' batsmen. Rahim was one of three ducks in the innings and his dismissal was soon followed by Junaed's, an attempted flick at a Roach yorker that had LBW written all over it.
Shakib's wicket made it five for 41 and when Mohammad Ashraful walked into the burning deck, the Tigers should have saved face with some gritty batting. Instead, Ashraful, Naeem Islam, Rokibul Hasan and the tail-enders were dismissed quickly, giving Benn a four-wicket haul and three each to Roach and Sammy.
Chris Gayle, ironically, gave the sell-out holiday crowd something to cheer about with six boundaries in his 36-ball unbeaten 37, the West Indies losing only Devon Smith in their short chase.
The Tigers go off to Chittagong and much soul-searching is expected in the port city where they next take on England on March 11.
SCOREBOARD
Scoreboard of the World Cup Group B match between Bangladesh and the West Indies at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur on Friday:
BANGLADESH
Tamim c Sammy b Roach 0
Imrul c Thomas b Sammy 5
Junaed lbw b Roach 25
Mushfiqur c Sarwan b Sammy 0
Shakib b Benn 8
Rokibul c Pollard b Sammy 4
Ashraful c Thomas b Roach 11
Nayeem c Thomas b Benn 1
Shafiul c Pollard b Benn 0
Razzak not out 2
Rubel b Benn 0
Extras: (nb-1, w-1) 2
Total: (All out in 18.5 overs) 58
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-16, 3-25, 4-36, 5-41, 6-51, 7-56, 8-56, 9-58
Bowler O M R W
Roach 6 0 19 3
Benn 5.5 2 18 4
Sammy 7 0 21 3
WEST INDIES
Smith b Nayeem 6
Gayle not out 37
Bravo not out 9
Extras: (b-2, w-5) 7
Total: (For one wkt in 12.2 overs) 59
Did not bat: Sammy, Sarwan, Chanderpaul, Pollard, Thomas, Benn, Miller, Roach
Fall of wicket: 1-29
Bowler O M R W
Shafiul 2 0 11 0
Nayeem 6 1 14 1
Rubel 1 0 12 0
Razzak 1 0 8 0
Ashraful 2 0 11 0
Shakib 0.2 0 1 0
Result: West Indies won by nine wickets.
Man-of-the-match: Kemar Roach.
Comments