Abu Dhabi: A resilient bowling performance followed by a dominant batting show helped England register a staggering 8 wicket victory over Bangladesh in Super 12,Group 1 game of ICC World T20 in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Batting first at the Sheikh Zyed Stadium, Bangladesh were held at 124/9 before England chased it down with ease in the 15th over. Mahmudullah’s decision to bat first backfired as apart from Mushfiqur Rahim(29), none were able to get into their 20’s. English spinner Moeen Ali(2/18) jolted the Bangladeshi batting line up twice in two balls in just the third over of the innings removing both their openers cheaply before Chris Woakes packing the veteran Shakib – Al – Hasan exposing the opposing middle-order inside the powerplay.
An early collapse meant Bangladesh failed to recover from although skipper Mahmudullah(19) and Rahim did the rebuilding of the innings for a brief period but failed to develop their start. It looked like the innings would get wrapped up even without scoring past 100 run-mark. However, cameos from Mahadi Hasan(11) and Nasum Ahmed(19) somehow managed to get to a respectable total. English seamer Tymal Mills topped the charts with his 3/27 while Liam Livingstone(2/15) joined the party as well picking up a couple of scalps.
In reply, England despite losing Jos Butler(18) early on, eased their through to 126/2 in 14.1 overs with opener Jason Roy smashing a 38 ball 61 while having ample support from Dawid Malan(28). The duo added a match-winning 73 run stand for second wicket hammering the Bangladeshi bowlers to seal the deal with their side now topping the Group 1 with 4 points.
Brief Scores: England 126/2 in 14.1 overs(Jason Roy 61*, Dawid Malan 28; Nasum Ahmed 1/26) beat Bangladesh 124/9 in 20 overs( Mushfiqur Rahim 29, Nasum Ahmed 19*; Tymal Mills 3/27, Liam Livingstone 2/15) by 8 wickets.
