Having won the toss, Bangladesh chose to bat first. With the help of Najmul Hossain Shanto’s 58 off 82 balls and Mahmudullah’s 31 off 48 deliveries, the hosts were able to cross the 200-run mark.
For England, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali shared eight wickets among them and eventually restricted Bangladesh to 209 in 47.2 overs.
Although the target seemed like an easy chase for the Three Lions, playing on Bangladesh’s turf was always challenging. The Bangla Tigers’ strong performance with the ball reduced Jos Buttler & Co. to 65/4 at one point during the chase.
However, Dawid Malan played an exceptional innings of 114 not out off 145 balls, allowing England to chase down the total and secure a victory. The match served as a reminder that Bangladesh is a different side when playing on their home soil, and England had to work hard for their win.
Malan, the Player of the Match, in the post-game presentation said: “Your game tends to grow as you start to play in different conditions. Different conditions come with a great learning curve. I had some previous experience here and to be honest it is not an easy wicket to start on. You need to trust the method and need to get through tough times. I played two seasons for the Prime Dholeshwar Sporting Club and it was brilliant. It helped my game. In England, we play the ball a lot squarer, but here, in Bangladesh, the wickets are skiddy during the day. It gets better as the game goes on and gets slower in the evening. I cultivated a different way of playing spin over here.”
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