The high octane Pool A encounter between Bangladesh and England kept swaying like a pendulum right until the moment when fast bowler Rubel Hossain came on to bowl the 49th over at Adelaide Oval yesterday. Tension among the spectators, the 22 players, and even the Bangladeshi journalists at the press box, was palpable.
England required 16 runs from 12 balls while Bangladesh needed two wickets for victory. A calm and composed Rubel (4/53) held his nerve and took just three deliveries to clean bowl Stuart Broad 9 and James Anderson 0 as the Tigers recorded a memorable 15-run triumph to progress to the quarterfinals of the 2015 ICC World Cup. A demoralised England, on the other hand, exited at the first hurdle, just like 1999 and 2003.
The last hour of the game was a nervy one, to say the least, for the Bangladesh cricketers with England going ever so close to their destination, courtesy of a crucial 75-run stand for the eighth wicket between Jos Buttler (65 off 52 balls) and Chris Woakes (42 off 40 balls). All of a sudden, Bangladesh’s tally of 275/7 was looking 15-20 runs short. At one point, it seemed like England might just sneak through.
However, things started to look bright for Bangladesh after Buttler’s departure. A disappointed Buttler, who edged Taskin (2/59) to wicket-keeper Mushfiqur Rahim, slowly trudged back to the dressing room, handing Bangladesh the initiative.
The match had one final twist though. When England were still 20 runs stranded from their target, Tamim Iqbal dropped a set Woakes off the bowling of Taskin at the long-on region. Were it not for Rubel’s heroics, Tamim might just have experienced the worst day of his life, having been dismissed for two earlier in the day.
When Rubel came running in to bowl the first ball of the 49th over, there was pin-drop silence at the Adelaide Oval. Broad in the meantime was bracing himself to face the fire. The left-hander was, however, helpless in the face of some fiery bowling by Rubel, who at times clocked 146km/h and was described by former English captains Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain as the day’s fastest bowler.
Rubel was coolness personified, dismissing Broad in the first ball before accounting for the wicket of Anderson off the third delivery to spark wild celebrations in the stadium. And as for the man himself, Rubel’s joy knew no bounds as he ran the whole length of the field, splaying his arms in delight.
Earlier, the Tigers, asked to bat first, once again experienced a jittery start as they lost Tamim and Imrul Kayes 2 in quick succession.
Mahmudullah (103 off 138 balls) and Soumya Sarkar (40 off 52 balls) started the recovery act, putting on 86 runs for the third wicket. Soumya departed soon after, bringing Shakib al Hasan 2 at the crease. And when Shakib went for an early shower, Bangladesh were struggling at 99/4.
The fifth-wicket pair of Mahmudullah and Mushfiq (89 off 77 balls) added 141 runs to enable Bangladesh to reach a competitive total. Bangladesh’s 275/7 is their highest score against England in ODIs.
Mahmudullah smashed seven fours and two sixes on his way to becoming the first Bangladesh cricketer to score a hundred in the World Cup. Mushfiq, from the other end, was playing the role of the aggressor and hammered eight fours and one six.
With seven points from five matches, Bangladesh ensured their progress to the quarterfinals with their match against New Zealand still to be played. A depleted England, on the other hand, bowed out of the flagship event with their tails firmly between their legs.
