The first one-day international (ODI) match in a three-match series was played yesterday at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram.
The match was disrupted by rain, but the visitors from Afghanistan were able to come out on top and win by 17 runs by using the Duckworth/Lewis method.
Afghanistan’s openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran got their team off to a good start after the visitors limited Bangladesh to a low score of 169 for nine after the match was shortened to 43 overs. This allowed Afghanistan to get off to a good start.
When play was stopped for the third time due to rain, Afghanistan’s chase was going swimmingly, with the team scoring 83 runs for two outs in only 21.4 overs. The game could not be restarted since the away team had already won it. They had a lead of 17 runs above the required score at the time of the last rain delay, so they were able to take advantage of the situation and win the match. This result was disappointing for the fans who had endured the bad weather and remained late to cheer for the Tigers.
Because there was no scoreboard pressure, the bowlers from Bangladesh were unable to coax any mistakes out of the Afghan hitters. The Afghan batters were consistent and patient in their pursuit of the target. The breakthrough for the Tigers came in the 16th over when star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan removed Gurbaz for 22 runs off of 45 ballss. However, by the time this occurred, the opposition had already taken the lead by scoring 54 runs and was in control of the match. At the score of 41, Zadran was still undefeated.
Tamim Iqbal, the captain of Bangladesh’s cricket team, was dismissed by Fazalhaq Farooqi for 13 runs off of 21 deliveries earlier in the day. Farooqi has now claimed the valuable scalp of the Bangladesh captain on all four times that the two have competed against one another.
Towhid Hridoy stood out as he hit his third fifty in his seventh one-day international to assist the Tigers in avoiding an embarrassing loss. Hridoy’s score of 51 off 69 balls was the only thing that kept the Tigers’ innings together when they were missing partnerships.