Team India registered a thrilling five-run win (DLS) against Bangladesh in Adelaide on Wednesday to inch closer to a semi-final spot at the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia.
Bangladesh were 17 runs ahead of the DL par score at 66/0 from seven overs, when rain intervened in their chase of 185 and would have been comfortable winners had no further play been possible. However, the tide turned after the target was set to 151 from 16 overs after a 40-minute break.
Liton Das, who set the chase with a blistering start, was run-out on the second ball after the break, courtesy of a direct hit from KL Rahul at the non-striker’s end. The opener smashed seven fours and three sixes in an enterprising 60 off 27. Bangladesh soon stumbled from 84/1 to 108/6 within a space of five overs, as Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya bagged two wickets each, the former accounting for the key wicket of Shakib Al Hasan.
Nurul Hasan (25* off 14) and Taskin Ahmed (12* off 7) got the equation down to 20 off 6, then 13 off 4 and eventually 7 off 1, but the latter could manage just a single off the final ball against Arshdeep to close it out.
Earlier, Virat Kohli registered his third fifty from four innings in the competition and finished 64* off 44 with eight fours and a six. Rahul (50 off 32) and Suryakumar Yadav (30 off 16) were the other notable contributors in an innings of 184/6 in the allotted 20 overs after Shakib opted to bowl.
India now sit first in the Group 2 standings with three wins from four matches with a healthy net run-rate of +0.746, and a win in their final Super 12s clash against Zimbabwe in Melbourne on Sunday would confirm them a semi-final berth.
South Africa will play Pakistan on Thursday, and a win for the former would help them confirm a top-two finish in the group.
Brief scores
India 184/6 (Kohli 64, KL Rahul 50, Mahmud 3-47, Al Hasan 2-33) beat Bangladesh 145/6 from 16 overs (Das 60, Hardik 2-28, Arshdeep 2-38) by five runs on DLS method
