Bangladesh suffered a 99-run defeat to Zimbabwe in the opening match of the tri-nation series in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, being bowled out for 172 while chasing a target of 272.
The loss once again exposed Bangladesh’s struggles with the bat in one-day cricket.
Bangladesh made a promising start to the chase, scoring 42 without losing a wicket in the first six overs. However, Soumya Sarkar’s dismissal triggered a collapse, leaving Bangladesh unable to recover as wickets fell at regular intervals.
Zimbabwe’s bowling was not particularly outstanding, but Bangladesh’s batters repeatedly gave their wickets away. Towhid Hridoy, Najmul Hossain and Mosaddek Hossain, who were expected to steady the innings in the middle overs, were all dismissed leg-before wicket after misjudging the line of the ball.
Tanzid Hasan, who had been dropped on the previous delivery, gave away his wicket with a catch on the very next ball. Soumya Sarkar was caught in the slips.
Earlier, Zimbabwe posted 271 for eight in their 50 overs, with Craig Ervine scoring 93 and Brendan Taylor making 81. Ervine was named player of the match. Taskin Ahmed took three wickets for Bangladesh, while Saif Hassan and Shoriful Islam claimed two each.
Tanzid top-scored for Bangladesh with 46, while Saif made 26 and Rishad Hossain added 23. For Zimbabwe, Brad Evans took four wickets for 45 runs, while Sikandar Raza and Masakadza claimed two wickets each.
Bangladesh will face Afghanistan in their next match on 21 October. To reach the final, they must win that match and rely on other results going their way.
Bangladesh will be hoping Zimbabwe beat Afghanistan in their match tomorrow. If that happens, the next match could effectively become a semi-final.
Brief scores
Zimbabwe: 271/8 in 50 overs (Craig Ervine 93, Brendan Taylor 81, Nyamhuri 21 not out; Taskin Ahmed 3/44, Saif Hassan 2/17, Shoriful Islam 2/47).
Bangladesh: 172 all out in 33.4 overs (Tanzid Hasan 46, Saif Hassan 26, Rishad Hossain 23; Brad Evans 4/45, Sikandar Raza 2/28, Masakadza 2/18).
Result: Zimbabwe won by 99 runs.
Player of the match: Craig Ervine.