In a thrilling T20 match that kept fans on the edge of their seats, Bangladesh defeated Ireland by 22 runs, thanks to an impressive performance by Taskin Ahmed. Ahmed’s scintillating performance saw him claim three wickets in a single over, a feat that would leave any cricket fan in awe. His performance also earned him his career-best figure in T20Is with four wickets for 16 runs.
Bangladesh batted first and posted a mammoth total of 207/5 in 19.2 overs before the rain interrupted the game for more than an hour. Ireland was then given a revised target of 104 runs in eight overs. The visitors made a strong start to their run chase with 18 runs in the first over, but Taskin’s brilliant bowling forced them to slow down, leading to their downfall.
Despite Gareth Delany’s unbeaten 21, Ireland finished with 81/5, falling short of their target by 22 runs. Speaking after the match, Ireland’s stand-in captain Paul Stirling said, “Disappointing to still come out on the wrong side.”
The hero of the day, Rony Talukdar, scored a career-best 67 runs from 38 balls, propelling Bangladesh to a strong total. Rony put on a brilliant opening partnership with Liton Das, who made 47 off 23 balls, scoring 91 runs in just seven overs.
Bangladesh was hoping to put the brakes on their scoring spree once Graham Hume bowled Rony. However, Shamim Hossain’s 20-ball 30 and Shakib al Hasan’s 20 not out off 13 balls helped Bangladesh race past the 200-run mark before the rain brought a premature end to the game. Right-arm pacer Craig Young claimed 2/45 for Ireland.
The game was Bangladesh’s first T20I at home against Ireland, who rested regular skipper Andrew Balbirnie for the three-match series. The two teams will meet again at the same ground on Wednesday for the second match.
Bangladesh won the preceding three-match one-day international series 2-0 and will meet Ireland again in a one-off Test match in early April. Cricket fans can look forward to more exciting and nail-biting action from these two talented teams in the coming weeks.
