The second team from Group D to qualify for the Super 8 has been confirmed. The South Asian tigers have booked their spot in the next stage in the ICC World T20 beating minnows Nepal in what turned out to be a close game. The win for Bangladesh means that former World T20 champions Sri Lanka have been eliminated from the tournament.
The qualification for Bangladesh is telling for several reasons. It shows that this team for a long time was considered among the minnows of the game, who have progressed to a level of stature over the years and have now become a competitive force. While certainly not among the strongest Bangladesh today are an established cricketing side.
Bangladesh feature in Another Low Scoring Game as Usual
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This has become a trend in this edition of the ICC World T20. Barring the odd few games where teams have posted sizable totals, the pitches in the United States and the Caribbean have not been the most conducive for big scores that many who follow the T20 format have gotten used to. Nepal having won the toss put the opposition in, hoping to pick up some early wickets and put pressure on the Bangladesh batsman.
This is exactly what they did. With a first-ball duck for opener Tanzid Hasan who was soon followed by Najmul Hossain Shanto for 4. The loss of early wickets meant that the Tigers had to get into rebuilding mode and ended by staying there for the rest of the innings. Besides Rishad Hossain who had a late, but short-lived flurry at the end they struck the solitary six of the innings. Bangladesh eventually ended up with 106; not a big score. But given the nature of the tournament so far, and not a bad one either.
Nepal’s Chase – Never Got Going
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In a game like this few things can happen. Either the team chasing gets off to a great start, cuts down the target, and puts pressure on the opposition. Or, as is often the case with newcomers to the game, simply fold and hand the opposition an easy win. For Nepal, it was something in the middle. Losing 2 early wickets immediately put the Nepal team on the back foot. And given the lack of experience and ability, the Gurkhas were never able to mount a comeback.
The trouble for Nepal was that Bangladesh bowlers hit the ground running from ball one. Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Mustafizur Rahman bowled solid spells taking 7 wickets among them and each giving away only 7 in their allotted 4 overs. This was it for Nepal who were never able to assert themselves in the game despite chasing relatively low scores.
Bangladesh – What to Expect in the Super 8
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Now that Bangladesh have made it to the next stage in the tournament the question is how far can they progress? Things only going to get tougher, with the best teams left in the tournament will be vying for the knockout spots. For Bangladesh, it is time now to up their game. Particularly in the batting department. With top sides like Australia powering on all cylinders.
With Bangladesh qualifying, this means there are only two teams left from the subcontinent. With Pakistan eliminated and India the unbeaten side going through. So it is time for the tigers to put in a few good performances and even cause a few upsets. Till will tell.
