United News of Bangladesh

Finals can make or break young cricketers. On Sunday in Harare, Rizan Hossan made his. Ninety-five runs with the bat, five wickets with the ball — and a trophy in his hands by the end of it.   Bangladesh didn’t start like champions. Sent in to bat, they lost three wickets for 65 and looked one more mistake away from a collapse. That’s when Rizan walked in to join Kalam Siddiki.   The pair dug in, nudged singles, and jumped on anything loose. By the time Kalam fell for 65, they’d put on 117 and dragged the innings back into safe waters.   Rizan looked set for a century but didn’t get there.   In the 48th over, chasing a sharp second run, he was caught short for 95 off 96 balls — ten boundaries, plenty of crisp drives, and a few grimaces at the ones that got away. Md Abdullah (38 off 29) and Samiun Basir (12 off 8) gave the innings a late kick to finish at 269 for five. Bangladesh U-19 beat South Africa again ahead of tri-series final   South Africa came out swinging.   Their openers piled on 59 in eight overs before Al Fahad, with two quick strikes, cracked the chase open. They tried to rebuild — Muhammed Bulbulia made 31, captain Jason Rowles 35 — but Rizan was waiting.   He bowled with a heavy ball and a mean length, nicking off Bulbulia, trapping Armaan Manack, then breaking the stubborn stand between Ntando Soni (34) and Bandile Mbatha (29). Shadhin Islam’s leg-spin chipped in with two wickets. Fahad added a third scalp to his tally. And when Rizan knocked over the last man to complete figures of 5 for 34, the job was done.   South Africa were all out for 236 in the 49th over. Bangladesh’s third win over them in this series, and the one that mattered most.   The other team of the series was the hosts Zimbabwe, who lost all six matches in this event.