With the series on the line, visitors Afghanistan will look to bounce back from seven-run defeat in first game against Bangladesh.
After suffering a shattering seven-run defeat to Bangladesh in the first One-Day International, Afghanistan will hope to bounce back in the must-win second ODI in Dhaka today.
Bangladesh won the first of the three game series to secure their 99th victory in the format, but for large parts of the clash, Afghanistan was well positioned to close out victory before a batting collapse in the last ten overs.
Set a target of 266, thanks to Tamim Iqbal’s 98-ball 80 and Mahmudullah’s 62 Afghanistan needed just 77 runs with eight wickets in hand, but experience told for the home side to turn the match. Shakib Al Hasan broke the 144-run third-wicket stand between Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi to become Bangladesh’s highest wicket-taker in the format, and then gave away just a single run in the 47th over. The rest of the attack rallied around him, sending in yorkers to chip away at the wickets, and Afghanistan crumbled.
There was elation in the Bangladesh camp at the end of the game, but Afghanistan could hold its head high. There were signs that Afghanistan had come a long way in international cricket in the way it soaked up the pressure of an away game in front of a vociferous Bangladesh crowd.
Afghanistan, however, will need to improve on the park. Its economy rate was poor, with pacemen Dawlat Zadran and Naveen-ul-Haq, proving expensive. Dawlat did return four wickets, but it came at the cost of 73 runs, while Naveen finished with 1 for 62 in his ten overs. It will also look to improve on its batting. Despite a good foundation being laid, its middle order was guilty of not playing to the match situation. Where the need of the hour was for careful grinding down of the target, its batsmen looked to hit their way through and lost wickets in the process.
For its part, Bangladesh will know that it shouldn’t let victory paper over the cracks. Its pacemen – the returning duo of Taskin Ahmed (back after corrective work on his action) and Rubel Hossain – were particularly expensive in their early spells before pulling things back towards the death. Furthermore, its middle order was also guilty of not building on a foundation. It had 204 on board at the end of the 41st over, but the batsmen then fell in a jiffy and the total wasn’t as close to 300 as it would have hoped.
"He [Taskin] delivered what we needed him to do,” said Bangladesh bowling coach Courtney Walsh. “Credit to him for how he came back. He could have had a completely bad day and that could have cost us the match."
Victory on Wednesday will not only help Bangladesh claim an unassailable lead in the three-match series, it will also signal its 100th win in ODIs. Afghanistan, however, is sure to pose a significant threat to those hopes.
Bangladesh return to Cardiff next year, the scene of their epic win against Australia in 2005, when they take on the antipodean neighbours New Zealand in the 207 ICC Champions Trophy in the Welsh capital. Tickets are now available priced from £30 adults and £5 for juniors from www.icc-cricket.com/tickets