West Indies beat Bangladesh to win T20I series with match to spare

West Indies took an unassailable 2-0 lead in their three-match series against Bangladesh, shrugging off a batting collapse that had taken them from 106-1 to 149-9 in Chattogram. It also marked their first T20I series win after seven consecutive defeats.

The West Indies bowlers- Romario Shepherd and Akeal Hosein played lead roles with three wickets each- were effective in defending the moderate total. Bangladesh could not chase 150 on a good batting pitch despite the presence of dew, which hampered the bowlers. Tanzid Hasan kept them going with 61, but the rest were often caught in two minds on a surface that encouraged playing through one’s shots.

The Bangladesh line-up did not do justice to their bowlers, who engineered West Indies’ batting collapse. Mustafizur Rahman picked up three wickets, while Nasum Ahmed and Rishad Hossain took two each.

Hope, Athanaze lift West Indies

West Indies had luck in the first half of their innings. Litton Das dropped Brandon King first ball, and Towhid Hridoy couldn’t hang on to a tough chance at mid-on off Alick Athanaze in the third over.

Athanaze launched Tanzim Hasan over square-leg in the same over, before Shai Hope struck Taskin Ahmed straight down the ground for his first six in the next one. The pair struck boundaries at ease during the powerplay and beyond. Athanaze hit five in total, while Hope picked up three.

Athanaze and Hope both reached their half-centuries off their 30th deliveries. They brought up their 100-run stand shortly afterwards too, in 10.5 overs, as the pair put West Indies in a position from where they could aim for 200 and beyond.

Nasum, Rishad wreck West Indies

Athanaze fell in the 12th over, holing out on the deep square-leg boundary, giving Nasum his first wicket. Sherfane Rutherford fell next ball for his second successive golden duck.

Mustafizur then removed Hope for 55, when the West Indies captain mistimed a slower ball and was caught at point. By the time Rishad got Rovman Powell also caught at point in the 15th over, West Indies were in free fall. Jason Holder was dismissed in the same over, caught at long-on for four.

Romario Shepherd tried to resurrect the innings but did not succeed. Mustafizur had him caught at deep point in the last over, before hitting Khary Pierre’s stumps next ball. Akeal Hosein was run out off the last delivery to complete a remarkable turnaround for the home side.

West Indies drop four chances

Bangladesh lost Saif Hassan early in a slow start, when Holder sucked him into an uppish shot against a short ball. Brandon King took the catch in the covers, making up for dropping the same batter in the second over. Litton Das got the chase on track with three fours in the fifth over, using Jayden Seales’ pace – twice playing the ball down to deep third, and also scooping over short fine leg.

Rutherford dropped Litton but the Bangladesh captain could not press on for much longer. Hosein bowled him for 23. Tanzid hit big sixes over midwicket, even as another catch went down in the field: Seales dropped Hridoy in the 11th over.

Seales made amends in the 13th over when he took a tumbling catch, after Hridoy top edged Shepherd. Tanzid reached his fifty with a boundary soon after, but Bangladesh still needed 50 off the last five overs.

Shepherd, Hosein deal final blows

Tanzid started the death overs with a four past cover, but Jaker Ali could not accelerate at the other end. Tanzid perished in the hunt for boundaries, caught on at deep point. He finished on 61 off 48 balls, having hit three sixes and three fours.

Jaker fell in the same over to Shepherd, caught at the deep square-leg boundary for 17 off 18 balls.

Holder started the 19th over by hitting Shamim Hossain’s off-stump with a yorker, and gave away just five runs. Bangladesh were left needing 21 off the last over. Hosein did not concede a boundary and also taking two wickets to finish with 3-22. (ESPNcricinfo)