Ahead of the Champions Trophy, Bangladesh’s sole preparation match in Dubai ended in a poor performance, with both batting and bowling failing to impress.
The goal was sky-high. Before leaving the country, captain Najmul Hossain Shanto declared that Bangladesh aimed to win the Champions Trophy. However, the performance in the warm-up match brought them down to earth, with the team failing to stand tall against Pakistan ‘A’.
In the only preparation match before the Champions Trophy, Bangladesh lost to Pakistan Shaheens (‘A’ team) by 7 wickets in Dubai.
In warm-up matches, the result is often secondary. But Bangladesh couldn’t quite manage to fine-tune their batting and bowling. Not a single batsman reached fifty, with Mehedi Hasan Miraz top-scoring with 44 runs. Miraz, batting at number four, might be an indication of his potential spot in the main tournament.
Thanks to the lower-order batsmen, the team managed to push the total to just over 200. However, they were bowled out for 202 in 38.2 overs.
In bowling, no one was able to make a notable impact. Pakistan finished the game with more than 15 overs remaining.
Everyone had a chance to bat and bowl in the warm-up match. However, Parvez Hossain Emon and Mahmudullah did not bat, while all others bowled.
The match, played at Dubai International Stadium on Monday, began with Bangladesh winning the toss and choosing to bat. The first blow came in the very first over. Opener Tanzid Hasan, who had hit two sixes off the first two balls, was dismissed on the third ball.
Shanto and Soumya Sarkar seemed to steady the ship, as the team reached fifty in the eighth over. However, neither could stay long enough. Captain Shanto was dismissed for 12 off 21 balls, and soon after, Soumya was run out for 35 off 38 balls.
After losing 3 wickets for 63 runs, Miraz and Towhid Hridoy took charge, building the only substantial partnership of the innings. But Pakistan’s Usama Mir broke the middle order and Bangladesh’s batting collapsed.
Hridoy was out for 20 off 33 balls, and Miraz, after scoring 44 off 53 balls, followed shortly. Mushfiqur Rahim was stumped for 7 off 14 balls. Zaker Ali only faced 5 balls, scoring 4 runs.
In just 18 runs, four wickets fell, ending any hopes of a big score. Usama Mir took all four wickets.
The tailenders fought hard to help the team pass 200, with Tanzim Hasan scoring 30 off 27 balls, and some contributions from Rishad Hossain (14) and Nasum Ahmed (15).
Bangladesh struggled against Pakistan’s spin attack, with leg-spinner Usama Mir claiming four wickets. Left-arm wrist spinner Sufyan Mukim and off-spinner Mubasir Khan took one wicket each. Usama has played 12 ODIs for Pakistan, while Mukim recently made his ODI debut, taking four wickets against South Africa.
Despite the poor batting performance, Bangladesh’s bowlers started well, dismissing Pakistan’s openers, Sahibzada Farhan (23) and Omair Bin Yousuf (1), within the first 37 runs. Tanzim Hassan dismissed Farhan, while Miraz got Omair.
Pakistan’s third-wicket partnership between Azan Awais and Mohammad Haris steadied the ship, with the pair adding 32 runs before Awais was dismissed for 20. In the next partnership, Pakistan nearly sealed the win, with Haris and Mubasir Khan making crucial contributions.
Haris, recently struggling in the BPL, played a match-winning innings, scoring 75 runs off 72 balls, including 7 fours and 3 sixes, before retiring hurt. Mubasir remained unbeaten on 63 from 54 balls, with 6 fours and 3 sixes.
Captain Shanto didn’t bowl more than two overs with Nahid Rana, while Taskin and Mustafizur bowled five overs each. Nasum Ahmed proved expensive.
With the warm-up match now behind them, Bangladesh turns its focus to the main tournament, which begins with a match against India on Thursday.
Summary of Scores:
Bangladesh: 38.2 overs, 202 (Tanzid 6, Soumya 35, Shanto 12, Miraz 44, Hridoy 20, Mushfiq 7, Zaker 4, Rishad 14, Tanzim 30, Nasum 15, Taskin 4*)
(Aliraja 5-0-40-1, Wasim Junior 7-0-27-0, Musa Khan 4-0-16-1, Mubasir Khan 7-1-42-2, Sufyan Mukim 5.2-0-32-1, Usama Mir 10-0-43-4)
Pakistan Shaheens: 34.5 overs, 206/3 (Sahibzada 23, Azan 31, Omair 1, Haris (retired hurt) 76, Mubasir 63*, Samad 1*)
(Taskin 5-1-27-0, Mustafiz 5-0-20-0, Miraz 6-0-39-1, Nahid 2-0-11-1, Tanzim 4-0-15-1, Rishad 5-1-15-0, Nasum 5.5-0-56-0, Soumya 2-0-17-0)
