12 March 2023

Mehidy Hasan Miraz takes four for 12 as England set Bangladesh 118 to win

12 March 2023

Mehidy Hasan Miraz took four for 12 as England were all out for 117 in their bid to take their T20 series against Bangladesh to a decider in Dhaka.

Following a six-wicket defeat in Chattogram, England’s rejigged batting order were well positioned to go big after losing the toss, reaching 50 for one at the end of the powerplay.

Losing three wickets in 16 balls sucked away the momentum and Bangladesh’s spinners turned the screw, led by Mehidy on the same ground where he made his mark in the 2016 Test series between the teams.

Ben Duckett held England’s innings together after the cluster of wickets with a run-a-ball 28 after Phil Salt had registered 25 off 19 deliveries, having opened with Dawid Malan instead of Jos Buttler.

After losing the toss for the eighth time in a row in all formats this year, Buttler dropped himself to four, with Moeen Ali at three, in a bid to redress a disjointed batting unit.

The experiment did not work, with Duckett and Sam Curran (12 off 16 balls) forced into a rebuilding job, the pair putting on 34 in 32 deliveries before the latter was stumped off Mehidy.

England, who registered just 10 fours and two sixes on a turning pitch, lost their final three wickets in the last over with two run outs, including the debuting teenager Rehan Ahmed.

The 18-year-old, who became England’s youngest men’s T20 cricketer, made a run-a-ball 11 but the focus will now be on him and the rest of the bowling attack.

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