Mehidy, with a little help from Shakib and Shanto, takes Bangladesh past Afghanistan
Afghanistan started well, but collapsed from 83 for 1 to 156 all out to lose the match in the first half itself
Afghanistan started well, but collapsed from 83 for 1 to 156 all out to lose the match in the first half itself
Scorer: K Vairavan | Commentator: Rvel Zahid & Hemant Brar
That's it from this game. This is Rvel Zahid saying goodbye on behalf of Hemant Brar. But there's another match that is underway, so why don't you hop over to South Africa versus Sri Lanka match coverage
So, Bangladesh bag their first two points. They didn't put a foot wrong and were clearly the superior side today. They bowled beautifully and restricted Afghanistan to an untaxing total. With no scoreboard pressure, Bangladesh were not in a rush to get over the line and played smartly, building small partnerships and being patient against the likes of Rashid, Mujeeb, and Nabi. As for Afghanistan, their bowling was spot on, but once again, with not enough runs on the board, they faced an uphill battle. Afghanistan will have some questions to ask of their top and middle order, which couldn't capitalize after getting a decent start and they didn't really bat with much intelligence and discipline, playing rash shots and not laying a platform for a decent total which eventually hurt them in their opening game. However, this is still the nascent stage of the tournament and we all know they will come back from this early jolt and challenge all the other teams. Meanwhile, Bangladesh showed a lot of mettle and didn't let emotions get better of them while chasing the target and were quite mature and level-headed in their approach. Scintillating half-centuries from Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Najmul Hossain Shanto will inspire plenty of confidence in the team that looks confident and is raring to pursue their quest to win the World Cup
Hashmatullah Shahidi, Afghanistan Captain: We had a good start but at the middle after fall of first wicket, we had bad shot selection but their bowlers bowled very tight. I think we fought well (in the field) but the score wasn't enough. Still we had a good fight and we look forward to our upcoming games. We should learn from our mistakes and we have to (focus) on the England game
Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh Captain: We didn't get the start we wanted, everyone believed once we get a wicket, we could get more (quickly). It wasn't easy but I am very happy the way we bowled. We have been training really hard in the last few days and we didn't want to make any excuse that the ground isn't ideal and we talked about that in the dressing room (that we have to adjust and play well despite the conditions) I am happy to contribute with my bowling, as I said all our five bowlers chipped in, they contributed, spinners played a bigger role but it's a long tournament, I am sure fast bowlers will contribute more. Mehidy, Shanto...these are our inform players; they are always confident and want to do well for the team.
Mehidy Hasan: It's a great moment for me. I did a lot of hard work in the past. The team management deserves credit. I was a little bit cautious in my mind early on while bowling but the captain told me to bowl at the right areas and told me to be consistent and that gave me confidence so credit goes to the captain. (on batting) I go for ball by ball and how to get better on this surface. The wicket was turning a little bit but I tried to stay (on the crease). I always play at number 8 so it was a great opportunity to bat in the top order. I always have the hungriness so definitely it's a great moment for me to perform.
Isam pings that this is Bangladesh's biggest win in terms of balls remaining in a World Cup. Previous best was 52 versus Netherlands in the 2011 World Cup
AdnanKapri: "Not expecting anything like that in this Match from Afghanistan After How they play in Asia cup Credit Must goes to Bangladesh they Beaten Afghanistan In every department."
Erfan : "I wanted to share some thoughts on Bangladesh's performance today in the World Cup cricket match against Afghanistan. While the opening might not have been ideal, the team showed great resilience and maturity. The bowling was tight and impressive, and it's promising to see this level of performance. Let's hope for even better performances in the upcoming matches"
Mohi: "BD could have go hard after scoring 120 as the run rate will be crucial in this tournament. I guess they missed a chance"
Awais: "So Bangladesh finishing on top on the points table."
Ahmad Mostak: "Well, Bangladesh has started the World Cup with nagin dance."
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"We want to finish in the same way. We want to take it match by match, just like we did it three years ago"
Afghanistan started well, but collapsed from 83 for 1 to 156 all out to lose the match in the first half itself
Getting the chance to bat up the order has unlocked new dimensions to his game
"You need to be on all the time. Being more consistent in our basics is what's going to look after us going forward in this tournament," says coach Jonathan Trott