Rizwan, bowlers topple Bangladesh in Tri-Series opener

Mohammad Rizwan's 78* off 50 guided Pakistan to a 21-run prevail upon Bangladesh in the initial round of the T20 tri-series in Christchurch.

Game in a nutshell

Put in to bat, Pakistan scored 167/5 in their 20 overs, which on a decent batting pitch was certainly not a defendable total means yet it gave their strong bowling unit something to defend. And so it proved as Bangladesh lost wickets at regular intervals, including an inevitable middle-order collapse, and missed Shakib Al Hasan more than they would have liked.

So one more great beginning by Babar and Rizwan?

Indeed, one more. The couple added 52 runs for the first wicket but to be fair, Babar looked scratchy during his 22 off 25 balls. So did Shan Masood who came to the crease once Mehidy Hasan Miraz sent the Pakistan skipper, harking back to the eighth over. Masood recuperated well to end up with 31 off 22 however it was Rizwan's speed increase that assisted Pakistan with setting up a sound total. Rizwan hit 7 fours and 2 sixes and add a critical 51 runs in the last four overs.

And Bangladesh's bowling?

They fared okay on an even-paced track. Taskin Ahmed, with figures of 2 for 25, stood apart of the pack and barely permitted Pakistan players to pull off boundaries. Pacers Mustafizur Rahman (0 for 48) and Hasan Mahmud (1-42) were costly however the spinners Nasum Ahmed (1 for 22) and Mehidy (2-0-1-12) more than compensated for them.

So Bangladesh's chase...

... was a missed opportunity. It was a was a missed opportunitywin for Pakistan in the end though, and that the margin of defeat was only 21 runs was largely down to the last over by Haris Rauf that saw Yasir Ali take him down for 20 runs. Otherwise, Bangladesh were hardly ever in the chase for most parts of the innings and lost wickets at regular intervals. Openers Miraz and Sabbir Rahman added 25 before a fifty run stand for the third wicket saw them comfortable and competitive at 87/2 but from thereon, Bangladesh lost 6 for 32. Mohammad Wasim Jr and Mohammad Nawaz shared five between them and in the end, all Yasir's unbeaten 41 off 21 did was gloss over the defeat.

For what reason didn't Shakib play this game?

He was rested owing to jet lag. Shakib arrived in New Zealand yesterday afternoon after he was held up for two days over technicalities related to transit visa. Shakib was playing in the CPL when Bangladesh were completing a training camp and a two-match T20 series against UAE; afterwards, he went to USA to be with his family. He, though, will be available to play against hosts New Zealand on Sunday and Bangladesh will be hoping that the all-rounder brings about a change in fortunes for them

Brief Scores: Pakistan 167/5 (Rizwan 78*; Taskin 2-25) beat Bangladesh 146/8 (Yasir 42; Mohammad Wasim Jr. 3-24) by 21 runs

Rizwan, bowlers topple Bangladesh in Tri-Series opener