Malcom Waller, Vusi Sibanda and Graeme Cremer were the chief architects as Zimbabwe beat an experimental Bangladesh by 31 runs in the third and penultimate Twenty20 international at Khulna’s Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium yesterday.
Waller smashed a quickfire 23-ball 49 with the help of two fours and four sixes while Sibanda’s enterprising 33-ball 44 featured half a dozen boundaries and a six as the visitors posted a challenging 187/6 from their allotted 20 overs in chilly conditions.
In reply, the Tigers managed 156/6 from their stipulated 20 overs with leg-spinner Cremer accounting for three crucial wickets conceding only 18 runs from his four overs. In the process, the Tigers failed to clinch the four-match series and will now have to wait for the final game tomorrow at the same venue.
In-form Sabbir Rahman blasted his second T20I fifty off 32 balls, featuring nine fours, but the fall of regular wickets meant the Tigers were barely in the hunt.
Sabbir, along with Soumya Sarkar (25), added 67 runs for the second wicket to give the home side a positive start to their chase but they lost their way thereafter in the face of some disciplined bowling by Cremer, Sikandar Raza (2/7) and Tendai Chisoro (1/15).
Wicketkeeper-batsman Nurul Hasan further enhanced his reputation by scoring an unbeaten 30 off just 17 deliveries while debutant Muktar Ali made an undefeated 15-ball 19 to go with his bowling figure of 0/17 from two overs earlier in the innings.
The Bangladesh team management decided to field four debutants – Muktar, Mosaddek Hossain, Abu Haider Rony and Mohammad Shahid - yesterday. And while Muktar will be relatively happy with his international bow, the same cannot be said of Mosaddek who departed for a 19-ball 15. The youngster will be disappointed with his display as he was dismissed while trying to execute a reverse sweep only to be clean bowled.
Rony (2/40) and Shahid (1/32), on the other hand, might have shared three wickets between themselves but they were slightly on the expensive side, giving away 72 runs in seven overs.
Makeshift captain Hamilton Masakadza (20), deputising in place of regular skipper Elton Chigumbura, and Sibanda once again gave their side a flying start by putting on 45 brisk runs inside five overs.
The Zimbabwean openers’ departure did not stop the momentum as Sean Williams (32), Richmond Mutumbami (20) and Waller continued to flay the Tigers bowlers all over the park.
Ace all-rounder Shakib al Hasan was the most successful bowler, picking up 3/32, and became just the sixth cricketer in history to join the 400-wicket and 8000-run club when he dismissed Mutumbami.
The other members of the club are former Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya, former India skipper Kapil Dev, former New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns, former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi and former South Africa all-rounder Jacques Kallis.