A fantastic all-round display from Soumya Sarkar and some timely blitz from young gun Shamim Hossain helped Bangladesh keep a resurgent looking Zimbabwe side at bay and come out triumphant in the series-deciding third T20I in Harare on Sunday.
Having delivered an important three-over spell (2/19) of medium fast-bowling in the first half, Sarkar played a matured knock of 68 off 49 balls and controlled Bangladesh’s otherwise challenging run-chase quite commendably.
Despite chasing a stiff target of 194, the tourists never really let the asking rate slip out of their radar, thanks to Sarkar, who ensured they maximised the powerplay restrictions by reaching the score of 50/1 by the end of six overs.
After losing fellow opener Mohammad Naim (3) very early in the piece, Sarkar stitched important partnerships with premier all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan (25 off 13 balls) and his captain Mahmudullah (34 off 28 balls). Sarkar’s innings included nine fours and a maximum.
Bangladesh lost their way a touch following Sarkar’s dismissal but ultimately recovered to post a victory, with Hossain producing an exceptional cameo (31* off 15 balls) under pressure.
Pacer Blessing Muzarabani (2/27) was the pick of the bowlers for Bangladesh. Luke Jongwe also bagged a couple of scalps from the game but he proved expensive along the way, ending with figures of 2/42. An important aspect of Sarkar’s innings was how he kept Raza, such a useful off-spin bowler for Zimbabwe, out of the game.
Sarkar smashed Raza in the powerplay for a 13-run over, and that proved to be the first and the final time he bowled in the chase despite the opposition carrying nine left-hand batters in their XI.
Earlier in the day, stand-out knocks from Wesley Madhevere (54 off 36 balls) and Regis Chakabva (48 off 22) and a lower-order cameo from Ryan Burl (31* off 15) took Zimbabwe to a daunting score of 193/5. The home team could’ve gotten more runs in the bank if not for the miserly spells delivered by Shakib (1/24), Shoriful Islam (1/27), apart from Sarkar.
Brief scores:
Zimbabwe 193/5 in 20 overs (Wesley Madhevere 54, Regis Chakabva 48; Soumya Sarkar 2/19, Shakib Al Hasan 1/24) lost to Bangladesh 194/5 in 19.2 overs (Soumya Sarkar 68, Mahmudullah 34; Blessing Muzarabani 2/27, Luke Jongwe 2/42) by 5 wickets.
