Bangladesh ended their World Twenty20 campaign with a seven-wicket loss to Australia in their last Super 10 match on Tuesday.
Chasing 154 runs for victory, Aaron Finch and David Warner stitched a 98-run opening stand in 68 balls as the Aussies overhauled the target with 15 balls to spare.
The Aussie openers knocked off 52 runs in the six overs of powerplay to take the game away as Bangladesh became the only side to lose all four matches at the business end of the tournament.
An eventful Shakib Al Hasan’s first over saw his skipper miss a stumping opportunity and Anamul Haque desperately diving for a Warner catch.Shohag Gazi was unlucky when an appeal for caught behind for Finch was turned down by the umpire. Television replays clearly showed that the ball took a thick edge off the bat on its way to the wicketkeeper’s gloves.
Bangladesh got the first breakthrough when Al-Amin Hossain went through the gates of Warner (48). The bowler bagged his second wicket when Nasir Hossain took a brilliant diving catch to send back Finch (71 off 45).
Soon after, debutant pacer Taskin Ahmed shattered Glenn Maxwell’s (5) stumps.
Aussie skipper George Bailey bludgeoned Al-Amin over the fence to bring up the winning runs.
Finch was adjudged Man of the Match. His quick-fire innings included 7 boundaries and four sixes.
Earlier, after electing to bat, a century stand between Shakib and Mushfiqur Rahim helped the hosts to 153 for 5
Shakib (66 off 52) and Mushfiqur (47 off 36) joined forces to power the hosts to their highest total of the competition
After a sluggish start, both Bangladesh openers were sent back by Aussie paceman Nathan Coulter-Nile with only 12 runs on the board in 3.2 overs.
The Aussie bowlers moved the ball around sharply in the early stages.
Anamul went back first, for a duck, edging Coulter-Nile for a regulation catch at first slip.
In his next over, Tamim Iqbal (5) drove one straight into the hands of Doug Bollinger at mid-off for his second wicket.
Shakib and Mushfiq rebuilt Bangladesh’s innings and eventually took the fight to the Aussie bowlers.
The pair added 112 off 78 balls for the third wicket as Bangladesh brought up their 100 in 13.5 overs.
Shakib hit his fourth T20 international fifty off 40 balls and made 66 runs off 52 balls laced with five boundaries and three sixes.
Mushfiqur also played a fluent innings, 47 off 36, with the help of five boundaries and a six.
Mushfiq and Shakib went back in successive overs. The captain departed when he slammed Shane Watson to Glenn Maxwell at deep midwicket. A tired Shakib slogged Bollinger at the same place to perish.
