Bangladesh got their prized first away win over New Zealand a week before the start of their Champions Trophy campaign.
The five-wicket win in front of a packed crowd in Clontarf was a tense affair at times but Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah aced the chase of 271 in some style, reports ESPNcricinfo.
Mahmudullah hit the winning runs through midwicket, with 10 balls to spare. He was unbeaten on 46 off 36 balls with six fours and a six, while Mushfiqur was not out on a run-a-ball 45 with three fours and a six.
Bangladesh were solid early in their chase despite the wicket of Soumya Sarkar. Tamim Iqbal and Sabbir Rahman - who both scored 65 - added 136 runs for the second wicket, a record for that wicket and the second-highest overall for Bangladesh against New Zealand. However, the side slipped from the relative comfort of 143 for 1 to 160 for 4 in the space of 17 deliveries.
Tamim began the chase with a six, the third batsman in the last 15 years- after Virender Sehwag and Martin Guptill - to do so. He managed to hit the ball cleanly out of the park and the ball was replaced after just one delivery. Jeetan Patel Soumya Sarkar for a duck later in the over, with the new ball.
Tamim and Sabbir then batted with a measured approach. With the New Zealand bowlers straying in line and bowling poor lengths, boundaries were also available and the pair capitalized. Six fours were hit in the first 10 overs and five more in the next 10 overs. In the 19th over, Patel lunged forward at deep point but couldn`t hold on to the half chance offered by Sabbir on 39.
Sabbir was severe on anything short, playing the pull and the cut with glee. Tamim found fours through the third-man region twice before scoring boundaries through the covers, midwicket and down the ground. Sabbir then found more boundaries over the bowler`s head as well as past the wicketkeeper, besides using the sweep.
The partnership ended when Tamim holed out at wide long-on, with Hamish Bennett running 15 yards to complete the catch. Tamim struck six fours and a six in his 80-ball knock. Sabbir fell seven balls later, caught in a mix-up with Mosaddek Hossain. Both batsmen ended up at the striker`s end with the third umpire judging that Sabbir was out as Mosaddek had reached the crease before him.
Mosaddek fell in the following over, out leg-before to Patel. Mushfiqur and Shakib Al Hasan then steadied the wobble by batting with caution while controlling the required run rate. They added 39 runs for the fifth wicket before Shakib holed out at long-leg off Bennett.
Mushfiqur slammed a straight six and then struck a scoop and a sweep before Mahmudullah took over as the more aggressive batsman in the partnership. He became the fifth Bangladesh batsman to score 3000 ODI runs, and got there with shots like a ramp a cover drive, an upper cut and a pull. The only hiccup in Mahmudullah`s innings came in the 44th over, when a well-hit drive burst through the hands of Tom Latham.
Earlier, New Zealand suffered a late collapse despite being set up for a big score by a 133-run second-wicket partnership between Tom Latham and Neil Broom. The pair mixed boundary-hitting with sharp singles; between them, they hit a total of 18 fours. Latham top-scored with 84 while Broom reached 63. Both were dismissed in a space of two overs which hurt New Zealand.
Both batsmen were also dismissed by Nasir Hossain, who had dropped Latham on 0 in the first over. Bangladesh made their way back in the game as New Zealand`s allrounders - Corey Anderson, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner and Colin Munro - fell in quick succession and the side slipped to 226 for 7 in the 44th over. Ross Taylor guided New Zealand`s slog-overs` charge, finishing unbeaten on 60 off 56 balls, a role he may have to repeat in the Champions Trophy.
Bangladesh bowled well in the last 20 overs, conceding more than 10 runs in an over only once in the period. Mashrafe and Shakib led the way, taking four wickets between them, with help from Mustafizur Rahman and Rubel Hossain.
Mustafizur and Rubel curbed New Zealand well in the last five overs, conceding only 33 runs. Nasir contributed wickets but Bangladesh would have rued the dropped chances, from the first to the last over. Nasir and Mosaddek missed chances to dismiss Latham while Sarkar couldn`t hold on to a chance at deep midwicket from Broom. In the last over, Mahmudullah dropped a sitter offered by Taylor but the fielder eventually had the last laugh with his unbeaten innings.