Like their bowling performance, Bangladesh’s batting display also offered much promise before eventually fading out in the end as India won the third and final T20I by 30 runs to seal the series at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium Sunday.
Chasing 175 for a historic series victory, the Tigers were well on their way thanks to a brilliant 98-run third-wicket stand between opener Mohammad Naim and No 4 batsman Mohammad Mithun.
Naim made a fine 48-ball 81, featuring 10 fours and two sixes, while Mithun scored 27 off 29 deliveries.
However, right-arm seamers Deepak Chahar and Shivam Dube had other ideas as the Tigers remarkably lost their last eight wickets for just 34 runs off 38 balls to spurn a golden opportunity to put one over their sub-continent rival.
In what ultimately was a disappointing batting display, only Naim and Mithun reached double figure.
Player of the match and series, Chahar bagged a whopping six wickets for just seven runs while Dube picked up three conceding 30 runs as one Bangladesh batsman after another departed like a pack of cards.
En route to his miserly bowling figure, which is the best ever in the history of T20Is, Chahar also registered a hat-trick to hammer the final nail in Bangladesh’s coffin.
Naim turned out to be one of the rare positives for the Tigers in this series as the left-handed batsman topped the run-scorers' chart from the two teams with 143 runs in three innings with an average of 47.66.
Earlier, India posted 174 runs losing five wickets in their stipulated 20 overs after interim Bangladesh captain Mahmudullah elected to bowl first.
Bangladesh lost the third T20I by 30 runs.#BANvIND #RiseOfTheTigers pic.twitter.com/50BXEQkndu
— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) November 10, 2019
In the City of Orange, India suffered an early hiccup as stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma, playing his 100th T20I, was cleaned up for two by right-arm seamer Shafiul Islam.
And just when the other opener Shikhar Dhawan (19) was starting to free his arms, Shafiul struck again as Mahmudullah kept his calm and took a difficult catch under the lights running in towards the 30-yard circle.
Shafiul was in inspired form as he registered a maiden in the second over of India’s innings, which was the first maiden over in this series.
The Tigers could have caused further damage but Aminul Islam Biplob dropped a sitter off the bowling of Shafiul at point as No 4 batsman Shreyas Iyer received a reprieve on nought.
Iyer (62) and one-drop batsman Lokesh Rahul (52) then punished the Bangladesh bowlers, adding 59 for the third wicket.
Iyer was impressive on way to his maiden T20I half-century and he was especially harsh on off-spinner Afif Hossain, smashing three consecutive sixes in the 15th over.
Rahul meanwhile, was his usual elegant self as he bagged his sixth fifty in the shortest format.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabsh Pant (six) continued his struggles as he was bowled by part-timer Soumya Sarkar.
Lower middle-order batsman Manish Pandey (22) and Dube (nine) were unbeaten at the end as India racked up a challenging total.
5⃣0⃣! Naim Sheikh picked up his maiden T20I fifty with a boundary!#BANvIND #RiseOfTheTigers pic.twitter.com/0beByfN1xe
— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) November 10, 2019
Biplob had a day to forget on the field as he also grassed another catch, that of Dube, but Bangladesh fielders otherwise put in a disciplined display.
Shafiul and Soumya picked up two wickets apiece while right-arm pacer Al Amin Hossain took one.
Biplob, left-arm paceman Mustafizur Rahman and Afif remained wicketless.
Both the Tigers and the Indians made one change to their playing XI from the second and penultimate T20I at Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot Thursday.
Bangladesh included Mithun in place of all-rounder Mosaddek Hossain while Pandey replaced all-rounder Krunal Pandya.
The Tigers won the first T20I by seven wickets at Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi last week, following which the Indians leveled the series with an eight-wicket win in the second match.
The two teams will now turn their attention to the two-match Test series with the first game starting Thursday at Holkar Stadium in Indore.
The second and final Test will be held at Eden Gardens in Kolkata from November 22-26.
3RD T20I
INDIA INNINGS R B
Rohit b Shafiul 2 6
Dhawan c Mahmudullah b Shafiul 19 16
Rahul c Liton b Al Amin 52 35
Iyer c Liton b Soumya 62 33
Pant b Soumya 6 9
Pandey not out 22 13
Dube not out 9 8
Extras (w 2) 2
Total (20 Overs) 174/5
Fall Of Wickets
1-3 (Rohit), 2-35 (Dhawan), 3-94 (Rahul), 4-139 (Pant), 5-144 (Iyer)
Bowling
Al Amin 4-0-22-1, Shafiul 4-1-32-2, Mustafizur 4-0-42-0, Aminul 3-0-29-0, Soumya 4-0-29-2, Afif 1-0-20-0
BANGLADESH INNINGS R B
Liton c Sundar b Chahar 9 8
Naim b Dube 81 48
Soumya c Dube b Chahar 0 1
Mithun c Rahul b Chahar 27 29
Mushfiq b Dube 0 1
Mahmudullah b Chahal 8 10
Afif c & b Dube 0 1
Aminul b Chahar 9 9
Shafiul c Rahul b Chahar 4 6
Mustafizur c Iyer b Chahar 1 3
Al Amin not out 0 0
Extras (lb 3, w 2) 5
Total (19.2 Overs) 144 all out
Fall Of Wickets
1-12 (Liton), 2-12 (Soumya), 3-110 (Mithun), 4-110 (Mushfiq), 5-126 (Naim), 6-126 (Afif), 7-130 (Mahmudullah), 8-135 (Shafiul), 9-144 (Mustafizur), 10-144 (Aminul)
Bowling
Khaleel 4-0-27-0, Sundar 4-0-34-0, Chahar 3.2-0-7-6, Chahal 4-0-43-1, Dube 4-0-30-3
India won by 30 runs
MoM: Deepak Chahar
MoS: Deepak Chahar
