A scintillating century by Nazmul Hossain Shanto guided Bangladesh to a three-wicket victory over Ireland in the second of three one-day internationals in Chelmsford Friday.
Shanto hit a brilliant 93-ball 117 – his maiden ODI hundred – as the Tigers reached their 320-run target with three deliveries to spare and took a 1-0 lead in the series ahead of Sunday's third and final match at the same venue.
The left-hander, who blasted a dozen fours and three sixes, was ably supported by Towhid Hridoy (68 off 58) and Mushfiqur Rahim (36* off 28) as Bangladesh overhauled Ireland's more than competitive 319.
Shanto and Hridoy, who struck five boundaries and three over boundaries, added 131 crucial runs for the fourth wicket to lay the platform for the Tigers' victory.
Harry Tector and George Dockrell earlier hammered the Bangladesh bowlers all over the Essex County Ground as Ireland racked up 319 losing six wickets in 45 overs.
Tector continued the tremendous start to his international career, smashing his fourth hundred in 29 innings to go with his eight fifties, while Dockrell, known more as a hard-hitting batter these days, registered his fourth half-century as the Irish put up a handsome total on the board after being asked to bat first.
Tector scored 140 off just 113 balls with seven fours and as many as 10 sixes – highest by an Irish batter in ODIs, surpassing captain Andy Balbirnie's previous best of eight maximums – while Dockrell made an unbeaten 74 off 47 balls, featuring three boundaries and four over boundaries.
The sixth wicket partnership of Tector, who now averages an impressive 53.69, and Dockrell added 115 runs off just 68 deliveries to set Ireland on course for the 300-run mark.
Balbirnie had chipped in with 42.
Hasan Mahmud, the only Bangladesh bowler to have conceded less than six runs per over, and Shoriful Islam bagged two wickets each amid chilly conditions.
Friday's encounter was reduced to 45-overs per side after morning showers delayed the toss by a couple of hours with each bowler allowed a maximum of nine overs.
Bangladesh captain Tamim Iqbal had won the toss and decided to bowl first.
Both the Tigers and the Irish went with unchanged teams after the first ODI was washed out last Tuesday at the same venue.
