Bangladesh Defeat Pakistan by 7 Wickets in First T20

Dhaka: Bangladesh secured a convincing 7-wicket victory over Pakistan in the first T20 match held in Dhaka.

After winning the toss, Bangladesh opted to field first. Pakistan struggled with the bat, posting only 110 runs before being bowled out in the final over of their innings.

Fakhar Zaman was the top scorer for Pakistan, making a valiant 44 runs with six boundaries and a six. No other batter offered significant resistance. Salman Ali Agha, the captain, managed just 3 runs, while Mohammad Haris and Mohammad Nawaz scored 4 and 3 runs respectively. Hasan Nawaz was dismissed for a duck.

Saim Ayub was the first to fall for 6, and despite a brief 5-run partnership, Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals. Abbas Afridi contributed 22 runs, Faheem Ashraf added 5, and Salman Mirza was dismissed without scoring.

For Bangladesh, Taskin Ahmed starred with the ball, claiming 3 wickets, while Mustafizur Rahman took 2. Mehidy Hasan and Tanzim Hasan picked up one wicket each.

Chasing the modest target of 111, Bangladesh’s Parvez Hossain Emon played a match-winning unbeaten knock of 56 runs. He was well supported by Towhid Hridoy, who scored 36. Jaker Ali remained not out on 15 as Bangladesh reached the target in 15.3 overs, losing just three wickets.

Pakistan bowlers Salman Mirza and Abbas Afridi managed to take two and one wickets respectively, but couldn’t stop Bangladesh from cruising to victory.

After the match, Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha stated that had he won the toss, he would have chosen to field as well. He added that the team had prepared well during the Karachi camp.

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Bangladesh’s captain said that a total of 140 would have been competitive on this pitch, but praised his team’s effort in restricting Pakistan and chasing the target comfortably.