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Analysis: Pak wins contest to knock out Bangladesh

A.Rafay

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Despite poor bowling effort, Pakistan cruises into Super Eights on the back of spectacular batting performance
Pakistan’s batting more than made up for a thoroughly disappointing show on the field, as it put Bangladesh’s attack to the sword and charged headlong to an eight-wicket win that booked a place in the Super Eights. Imran Nazir clobbered the fastest half-century of the ICC World Twenty20 2012, and was calmly abetted by Mohammad Hafeez, as Pakistan ensured that Bangladesh could not pull off an upset.

Faced with a dual target – Pakistan needed 176 for victory but only 140 to qualify for the Super Eights – Nazir and Hafeez made calculators and statisticians redundant during a first-wicket stand that broke the back of Bangladesh’s bowlers. Not learning a thing from the first half of the game, Mashrafe Mortaza and Shafiul Islam tried to bounce the openers out. Nazir greeted this form of attack with panache, picking the length early and pulling with ferocity.

When Hafeez realised that it was Nazir’s day, he gladly played second fiddle, feeding the strike to Nazir and watching as he powered his team to a total of 64 off the PowerPlay overs. When Mushfiqur Rahim switched to spin to stem the rot, Nazir was already in full cry, and even the smallest error in length was brutally punished.

Shakib Al Hasan learnt the hard way as he dropped one short and Nazir rocked on to the back foot in a flash to pull the ball deep into the stands. When Nazir brought up his half-century, off only 25 balls, the game was already as good as in the bag. But, after celebrating the end of a dry spell with much relief, Nazir knuckled down.

It was only in the 14th over of the innings, with 124 on the board, that Bangladesh managed to separate the openers, as Nazir (72) flat-batted Abul Hasan down to long-off. As is so often the case in these situations, one wicket brought another as Hafeez (45) chased a wide one from Hasan to be caught behind.

The qualifying mark was breached when Nasir Jamshed pulled Hasan over midwicket for six. Jamshed, who scored a cultured half-century against New Zealand in Pakistan’s first match of the tournament, helped himself to 29 in a 52-run partnership with Kamran Akmal that took Pakistan home with eight balls to spare.

At the break, it seemed like Bangladesh had finally done enough to break its 13-year jinx against Pakistan. Ever since a win at the ICC World Cup 1999 in Northampton, Bangladesh had failed to get the better of Pakistan, though it recently came close in the Asia Cup.

If Bangladesh was allowed to dream, it was only thanks to a series of enterprising innings, none more so than Shakib’s 54-ball 84. While Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur made valuable contributions, it was Shakib who controlled the tempo of the innings from No. 3. On a skiddy pitch, first Sohail Tanvir and Umar Gul, and later Yaser Arafat, tried to bounce Shakib out. Cutting and pulling fearlessly, Shakib had answers for all questions asked of him.

The kind of day Pakistan was having on the field was typified by Tanvir’s blooper at midwicket, when a flailed pull from Mushfiqur off Arafat floated towards the fielder like a feather on a light breeze. In a moment that will no doubt be reprised endlessly on Youtube, Tanvir fobbed the ball off, dropping perhaps the easiest catch you will ever see in international cricket.

The real damage, though, was not done by fielding lapses, but by Pakistan’s bowlers failing to hit the right length at any stage of the innings. Shakib feasted, doing well to deal with full tosses and long hops with equal aplomb. When he finally fell, Shakib had muscled 84 off only 54 balls, with 11 fours and two sixes, to take Bangladesh to 175 for 6. Eventually, though, even this would prove too little.
 
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post articles from BD press on the match..
I cant find any
 
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Congratulations. Now don't lose to the Indians. Repeat the warm up match and now you know weakness of your bowling.
 
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post articles from BD press on the match..
I cant find any

Pallekele, Sep 26 (bdnews24.com/ Reuters) - Imran Nazir blasted 72 off 36 balls to lead Pakistan into the World Twenty20 Super Eight stage after beating Bangladesh by eight wickets in the final Group D match in Pallekele on Tuesday. Nazir slammed nine fours and three sixes in an opening stand of 124 off 81 balls with skipper Mohammad Hafeez (45) as Pakistan cruised past Bangaldesh's total of 175 for six with eight balls to spare. Pakistan replied with 178 for two, Nasir Jamshed and Kamran Akmal seeing them home with an unbroken stand of 52 off 28 balls. Jamshed finished unbeaten on 29 including two sixes and Akmal on 22s. Bangladesh had to restrict Pakistan to a total below 140 to reach the last eight but in a high-scoring game played on a perfect batting track their bowling was not good enough to contain the Pakistanis. Dropping Hafeez on nine in the second over proved a costly lapse for Bangladesh as he went on to share a match-winning stand with Nazir. Bangladesh made a flying start as openers Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Ashraful raced to 34 off 21 balls before Sohail Tanvir bowled Ashraful. Shakib Al Hasan, promoted to number three, kept the momentum going with some stunning shots that brought him 11 fours and two sixes in his 84 off 54 balls, the highest score by a Bangladesh batsman in a Twenty20 international. Pakistan spilled at least three chances which allowed Bangladesh to post a challenging total. Pakistan's win meant that all four unbeaten teams in the group stages, Australia, India, Pakistan and South Africa, are in Group Two of the Super Eights competing for a semi-final berth in Colombo. Group One is made up of teams who all lost a game - England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies.
 
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Congratulations. Now don't lose to the Indians. Repeat the warm up match and now you know weakness of your bowling.

Is cricket as famous as football in BD?
I was in chitagong in 1998 and it looked like i am in Brazil..as all houses had Brazil flag on the roof.
 
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Is cricket as famous as football in BD?
I was in chitagong in 1998 and it looked like i am in Brazil..as all houses had Brazil flag on the roof.

lol bhai, what were you doing in chittagong ? Cricket is more popular than football. But the nation goes crazy during Fifa world cup ( 1998, france world cup) !
 
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