Bangladesh emerged victorious in a thrilling encounter against Afghanistan in the 1st T20I of the series, held at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium on Friday. Bangladesh won the match by 2 wickets with just 1 ball remaining.
In the last over, Bangladesh needed 6 runs to win the match. Karim Janat conceded four runs off the first ball, and then registered a hattrick, removing Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taskin Ahmed and Nasum Ahmed off the second, third and fourth balls. The fate of the match was hanging, but Shoriful Islam hit him for four off the fifth ball and sealed the match for the Tigers.
After winning the toss, Bangladesh opted to field first, looking to restrict the Afghan batting lineup to a manageable total.
Afghanistan started their innings on a shaky note, losing opener Hazratullah Zazai early, caught by Towhid Hridoy off the bowling of Nasum Ahmed for 8 runs. Rahmanullah Gurbaz followed suit, dismissed by Taskin Ahmed for 16 runs.
The Afghanistan middle order struggled to build partnerships as wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. Ibrahim Zadran was caught by Litton Das off Shoriful Islam's bowling for 8 runs, and Karim Janat departed for 3 runs, caught by Najmul Hossain Shanto off the bowling of Shakib Al Hasan.
Mohammad Nabi played a crucial innings, remaining unbeaten on 54 runs off 40 deliveries. He found some support from Najibullah Zadran, who contributed 23 runs before being caught by Litton Das off Mehidy's bowling. Azmatullah Omarzai provided a late surge, smashing 33 runs off just 18 balls, including four boundaries.
However, Afghanistan's total was restricted to 154 for 7 in their allotted 20 overs. Mustafizur Rahman claimed the wicket of captain Rashid Khan in the final over, limiting Afghanistan's score. The Bangladesh bowlers performed admirably, with Shakib Al Hasan taking two wickets.
Chasing a target of 155 runs, Bangladesh had a shaky start, losing Rony Talukdar early, bowled by Fazalhaq Farooqi for 4 runs. Najmul Hossain Shanto fell soon after, dismissed by Mujeeb Ur Rahman for 14 runs.
Litton Das and Shakib Al Hasan tried to stabilize the innings, but Litton was caught by Rashid Khan off Azmatullah Omarzai's bowling for 18 runs. Bangladesh found themselves in a precarious position at 64 for 3 in the 10th over.
But Towhid Hridoy played a crucial knock, remaining unbeaten on 47 runs off 32 deliveries, which included three fours and two sixes. He was well supported by Shamim Hossain, who scored 33 runs off 25 balls before being caught by Rahmanullah Gurbaz off Rashid Khan's bowling.
Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, Bangladesh managed to keep the required run rate in check.
In a thrilling finish, Bangladesh reached the target of 155 runs with 1 ball remaining, ending the match at 157 for 8. Karim Janat was the pick of the Afghan bowlers, claiming three wickets— and off three consecutive deliveries in the last over, while Fazalhaq, Mujeeb, and Azmatullah took one wicket each.
With this win, Bangladesh took the lead in the series 1-0. The next match will be played at the same venue on July 16th.