Sports desk: A shiny century by opener Tamim Iqbal went in vain as England outgunned Bangladesh by eight wickets in the opener of ICC Champions Trophy at the Oval yesterday. Bangladesh’s campaign got off to a shaky start despite scoring past the 300-run mark as England displayed ruthless batting with their upper order firing all guns. Although the tigers did well in their batting, not scoring enough in the last five overs was the ultimate reason for them to see the other side of the coin. Considered as the red-hot favourite, England justified the tag in a clinical finish, chasing down Bangladesh’s 305 for six with 16 balls to spare.
Joe Root’s 133 off 129, his 10th ODI century, led the rout as well as trumped Tamim’s 141 ball-128 as Bangladesh looked determined to defend the total. The prospect became bright once Mashrafe dismissed danger man Jason Roy for 1 in just third over, leaving England six for one.
There was sense of hope despite facing a batting line up extended till No. 11. But Alex Hales and Joe Root showed as to why the English side, which never won any ICC trophy barring the World T20 in 2010, is considered as the most favourite.
Hales targeted Mashrafe’s medium pace and clubbed him twice in his fifth over to the square leg and point to get the momentum. Root relied on singles to keep the scoreboard ticking but Hales continued his onslaught until he holed one to the mid-on off a modest leg-spin of Sabbir Rahman.
By the time Hales was dismissed, he was just five runs away from his sixth century. His 95 off 86 was studded with 11 fours and two sixes. England reached 165 in 28 overs when Bangladesh finally got the better of Hales. Bangladesh needed some quick wickets at this phase to keep them alive. However, the bowlers weren’t as penetrative and imaginative as they have been over the past two years.
Despite Hales’ departure, the English scoreboard kept raging, as Root got ample support from captain Eoin Morgan and serenely drove the side to home but not before a drama.
Bangladesh could have got the wicket of Morgan for 22, had third umpire not ruled out the catch that Tamim held on to with a dive after sprinting from the long-on. The soft signal was ‘not out’ as umpires thought it wasn’t taken cleanly. Tamim, however, looked unhappy with the decision. Morgan finally scored 75 off 61 with eight fours and two sixes.
Apart from the century in this match, the last ten of Tamim's 12 fifty-plus scores since World Cup 2015 had come in winning causes for Bangladesh, one in No result and only one in losing cause. So Bangladesh were ecstatic after their batting.
The swashbuckling opener sent the ball across the rope 12 times and struck three towering sixes in his 128-run knock, his ninth century and fifth in the last two years.
Mushfiqur Rahim complemented Tamim’s vibrant knock with 79 off 72, smacking eight boundaries.
Tamim and Mushfiqur Rahim combined for 166-run for the third wicket, a highest partnership for any wicket against England and outside home. The duo built the partnership at the moment when Bangladesh lost Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes in almost quick succession.
Tamim’s cautious, yet attacking approach, however, gave England bowlers a torrid time to find their line and length as he played his shots with ease at every corner of the park. The trademark straight drive and cover drive was a treat to watch.
Mushfiqur Rahim himself was benefitted by Tamim’s resolute batting. The thing that Muhsfiqur did was to accelerate the scoreboard with quick singles and occasional boundaries.
As the duo looked more threatening for the English bowlers and raised the prospect of propelling the team past 350, fast bowler Liam Plunkett (4 for 59) gave the English fans a sigh of relief, having dismissed both of them in consecutive deliveries, keeping Bangladesh reeling at 261 for four. Shakib Al Hasan was disappointing again but Sabbir Rahman who batted down the order to accommodate Kayes at No. 3 made 15-ball 24 to take the side past 300. However, at the end, Bangladesh rued the fact that they were 25-30 runs short to give England a hard time.
