Bangladesh vs England, 3rd ODI: Mushfiqur Rahim, Mosaddek Hossain guide hosts to 277/6

The third and the final One-Day International (ODI) between Bangladesh and England at Chittagong saw the hosts posting a massive total while batting first. Bangladesh came out all guns blazing with both their openers getting off to a flying start but failed to convert it into a big score. After losing their momentum in the middle, Bangladesh somehow managed to make a strong comeback and post a massive total of for the loss of six wickets in their 50 overs. Mushfiqur Rahim, Mosaddek Hossain played some good shots lower down the order to guide his side to a fighting total. They improvised well and played some good shots to garner some priceless runs lower down the order. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Bangladesh vs England, 3rd ODI at Mirpur 

England got it right at the toss and elected to field first, Bangladesh got off to a good start with Tamim Iqbal and an in form Imrul Kayes scoring runs right from the outset at Chittagong. They played the powerplay overs with immense confidence and did well in not losing an early wicket with the new ball. Tamim took his time and scored runs at a slow rate while Kayes was cautious as batting against the new ball was not easy. The ball was doing some movement initially but the duo did well in keeping the scoreboard ticking.

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Bangladesh suffered a huge blow after losing both the openers in quick succession and further putting their team in trouble. Ben Stokes got the better of Kayes for 46 with a cross-seamer, which was safely caught by Dawson at square leg. The first blood was drawn. Stokes did a commendable job in getting his team he much needed breakthrough. Adil Rashid chipped in with the key wicket of Tamim Iqbal with his wily leg-spin as Bangladesh lost their second wicket very early. Rashid got the better of Iqbal with a googly.

Rashid started this game with 47 wickets to his name and needed three more to reach the 50 ODI wickets milestone, which he successfully did that too in a crunch situation. After outfoxing Tamim, Rashid also got the better of Mahmudullah for a mere score of six runs. He bowled well to break the spine of Bangladeshi batting and swiftly moved on to 49 wickets with the dismissal of Mahmudullah. Sabbir Rahman played a good hand and was battling it out for his side. He rotated the strike and scored boundaries off loose deliveries. Rashid bowled his stock delivery in order to get rid of Sabbir Rahman for a well played 49. He got to his 50 ODI wickets with the dismissal of Rahman, and scripted his name in the history of ODI cricket.

Shakib Al Hasan was the man in form for Bangladesh after scoring some valuable runs in the previous games. But he failed to make any impact in the series decider. Shakib was dismissed for 4 by Moeen Ali with a beautiful delivery. Ali once again lived upto his reputation of picking crucial wicket at key moments. Bangladesh were in all sorts of trouble after his fall and needed a big partnership to bail his team out of crisis. Mushfiqur Rahim, who had an ordinary run in the recent times but the explosive right-hander stood up when his team needed him the most. Mushfiqur remained unbeaten on 67 and played some unorthodox strokes in the climax of their innings to garner some crucial runs for his side.

Mushfiqur was equally supported by Mosaddek Hossain who played sensibly in the end overs. English bowlers were unable to break this partnership as they accounted for 85 runs between them. Mosaddek remained unconquered for 38 runs, which included four boundaries. Bangladesh after stumbling in the middle didn’t look good for such a big score but Mushfiqur and Mosaddek played well. They now have a fighting total on the board and their bowlers have decent amount of runs to battle for.

English bowlers were running out of options when Mushfiqur and Mosaddek started firing. They bowled erratically and leaked too many runs in the end. Ben Stokes had a wicket to his name while Rashid had four. Moeen Ali contributed with a wicket too. England have a task in hand in hunting down such a big target as the pitch has something for the bowlers. There was some assistance for the spinner and Bangladesh certainly have a formidable spin attack. English bowlers will be tested with some quality spin and if they are eyeing for a series win they will need some good partnerships from the top-order. Expect some more action as the second innings unfolds.

Brief Scores: 

Bangladesh 277/6 in 50 overs (Mushfiqur Rahim 67, Sabbir Rahman 49; Adil Rashid 4 for 43, Ben Stokes 1 for 24) against England.