Kuwait’s 58-year old captain Bastaki Mahmoud could have easily opted to bat first after winning the toss against their mighty opponents Bangladesh in the fourth quarterfinal of the 17th Asian Games men’s cricket competition in Incheon yesterday. The decision to bowl first mainly came because of their performance against Nepal in the group stage where they were bundled out for 20 after taking first strike. However, the decision to field first, with no rain around, made no difference whatsoever as Bangladesh, as expected, landed a huge and comfortable win against the World Cricket League Division 7 side.
The Test-playing nation posted 224 in their 20 overs but the nine wickets they lost should cause a headache for the Tigers think-tank. Kuwait, in reply, bowed out for 21 in 13 overs.
It was the Kuwaiti skipper who drew the first success for his team after Tamim Iqbal and Anamul Haque, in particular, started off in top gear. Anamul slammed five fours and a six in his 18-ball 38 before being trapped leg-before wicket in the fifth over with the scoreboard reading 61.
Kuwait had their moments through their pair of father and son. Mahmoud’s 23-year old son Bastaki Fahad, who initially took the field as the wicketkeeper, joined his father from the other end and the off-spinning duo went on to share five wickets with the junior Bastaki taking three.
Tamim, who survived a head-high catch at point in the first over, lasted 22 balls and looked ordinary in his 28-run knock. He holed out to Mahmoud at square-leg off a waist-high full toss off Fahad’s bowling.
As the innings progressed it seemed the Bangladeshi batsmen, who have gone through a miserable patch so far this year, were finding it difficult to cope with the “dolly” full tosses coming their way every now and then.
Mithun Ali slogged to 59 off 25 balls hitting four fours and a maximum, but the rest including Shakib al Hasan, Mahmudullah and Nasir Hossain made no impact.
Bangladesh were 155 for two in the 13th over when Shakib (23) sent a high full toss straight to long-on. Mithun departed next over to another full toss after being caught at mid-wicket.
Mahmudullah lasted four balls, Nasir was shaky during his 11-ball eight which included only singles and twos and Shuvagata Hom walked back with a golden duck – enough said.
Coach Chandika Hathurusingha might have asked his players to score as much as possible against the amateur side and get their confidence level up in the process, but whether he had a back-up plan (required just in case) was not clear.
Granted, it was the last half of the innings and Bangladesh had plenty of wickets left in their tank. However, for the 10th ranked Test nation losing nine wickets in 20 overs to the 38th ranked non-Test playing nation should never be a source of comfort.
The score did not matter to Kuwait as their players seemed extremely happy having being able to dismiss nine batsmen. They also visited their portion of the crowd during the interval and bowed to them, thanking them for the enthusiastic support.
The Tigers’ bowling, however, should not be a concern as they did what was expected off them. Mashrafe bin Mortaza bowled two maidens up front while Rubel Hossain gave away just one run off his two overs.
Mashrafe shuffled his bowlers and gave two overs each to Shakib, Mahmudullah, Arafat Sunny and Shuvagata. Sunny was the most effective with his straight-on deliveries and bagged four victims at the expense of eight runs.
Mahmudullah gave away one run for the three wickets he claimed while Shakib and Shuvagata also chipped in with a wicket each. Leg-spinner Shabbir Rahman, who earlier made 35 off 18 balls, completed the rout claiming Alotaibi Mohammed who made the highest seven runs in the Kuwaiti line-up.
Bangladesh will face a strong Sri Lankan side in the second semifinal today at the same venue. The game is equally important for both sides as defending gold-medal winners Bangladesh will be up against the 1996 ICC World Cup champions who also comprises big names in their side.
However, weather forecasts suggest heavy showers and thunderstorms at Incheon during the game that starts at 11am. A washout will result in a coin toss to decide the winner and Mashrafe and Co will finally need ladyluck on their side if that is the case.
