Flourish after attrition
When Anamul Haque was dismissed in the second over of the opening ODI against the West Indies, offering a simple catch at slip, the cloud hanging over the Providence Stadium warned of another gloomy prospect for the Tigers after those heavy defeats in the two-Test series, where they were bowled out for 43 -- their lowest total.
By the time rain stopped play in the fifth over, Bangladesh were crawling at 10 for one. However, when play resumed after the 35-minute rain break, the two most senior statesmen in the Tigers' rank -- opener Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan -- not only removed that fear with a record stand but also laid the foundation from where they could think of winning the game. The pair put on 207 runs for the second wicket, which is Bangladesh's second-highest partnership for any wicket behind Shakib and Mahmuduallh Riyad's imperious 224-run fifth-wicket stand in the Champions Trophy against New Zealand in 2017.
It was also Bangladesh's highest second-wicket stand, erasing the previous best of 160 between Junaid Siddiqui and Imrul Kayes against Pakistan in 2010. Although along the way both Tamim and Shakib had their share of fortune -- both were dropped twice -- the good thing was that they never looked like throwing their wickets away. Initially they grafted and once settled on a slow surface they picked up the pace, hitting those odd boundaries in between so many singles.
Tamim scored his 10th ODI century off 146 balls that contained seven fours and a six. It may be the slowest century by a Bangladesh batsman, but the seasoned left-hander played catch up after that. He remained unbeaten on 130 off 160 balls. He scored his last 30 runs off 14 balls, hitting three fours and a couple of sixes including a sweetly-timed one over long-off against Andre Russell in the last over that produced 21 runs.
Shakib missed what could have been his eighth century for three runs, miscuing an attempted sweep against Devendra Bishoo. He was watchful throughout his 93 off 121 balls, which is something very important as far as his elevation to the crucial number three position is concerned.
The champion all-rounder struck six fours in his crucial yet workmanlike innings. He was dismissed in the 45th over with the scoreboard reading 208 for two and it was understandably not the best time for a set batsman to get out. Besides, the slow progress from the 40th over suddenly put Bangladesh in the familiar territory of losing the plot in the final five overs. Sabbir Rahman walked to the middle to pick up the pace but failed. The right-hander scored three off four balls before being given out stumped, although TV replays showed his foot was still behind the line when West Indies wicketkeeper Shai Hope dislodged the bails. However, his dismissal brought the best of Bangladesh in the death overs with Mushfiqur Rahim and Tamim plundering 43 runs in the last two overs.
Mushfiqur played an absolute blinder of a cameo. The pocket-sized dynamo blasted three fours and a couple of sixes in his 11-ball 30. He clobbered 22 runs in the penultimate over of West Indies captain Jason Holder. Mahmudullah faced the last delivery and utilized it with a boundary down to deep fine leg. That boundary not only confirmed Bangladesh's highest total in West Indies – 279 for four -- but also provided a fulfilling finish to an innings that started so badly.
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