Bangladesh battled to a seven-wicket win in the smog at Delhi, defeating India for the first time in nine T20Is to take a 1-0 lead in the series. Ben Gardner tells the tale of the tussle in six deliveries.

India innings

0.6, Rohit Sharma, lbw Shafiul Islam, 9 (5)

There might never have been a limited-overs batsman as ruthless at making the most of starts as Rohit Sharma. While an opening bowler never wants to bowl any loose deliveries, giving the man with more ODI doubles and more T20I tons than anyone else too many sighters has proved fatal for many a team. And Shafiul Islam committed the cardinal sin, offering Rohit a full ball on his pads first up, which was gleefully guided past short fine leg.



Four balls later, a trademark Rohit punch took India’s skipper past his compatriot Virat Kohli into top spot in the all-time T20I run charts, and already he was looking ominous. And then it was all over, Shafiul’s clever slower ball nipping back in to deceive the opener in the flight and off the pitch. Bangladesh had drawn first blood and taken the ascendancy, and barely let it slip throughout the contest.

6.6, Aminul Islam to Shreyas Iyer, SIX

It’s customary in a T20 innings for overs 7-10 to be a chance to take stock, to consolidate upon leaving the powerplay and lay the platform to cash in later on, especially on a sticky pitch that made free-flowing batsmanship difficult. Even in the crash-bang-wallop world of T20 cricket, batsmen in the top four tend to put some sort of price on their wicket and are allowed a few balls to play themselves in.

Facing his second ball, however, Shreyas Iyer showed he wasn’t ready to be a slave to conventional wisdom, lofting Aminul Islam beautifully over long-off for six. It was a statement of intent, a counter-thrust after an impressive Bangladesh start, and perhaps also a message to his more established team-mates to get a move on. India’s next generation are making themselves heard.

14.5, Shikhar Dhawan, run out Mahmudullah/Mushfiqur Rahim, 41 (42)

It was that sort of day for Shikhar Dhawan, the kind when timing is hard to come by, and even when you do nail one or go for something inventive, you pick out the fielder anyway. His run out was Rishabh Pant’s fault – the explosive wicketkeeper changing his mind on a second too late for Dhawan to get back to his crease – but also felt merciful, the opener having crawled to 41 off 42 balls. However, it arguably came too late for the hosts, ending the partnership at 25 in 27 balls, stalling their progress when they would have hoped to accelerate.

[caption id=”attachment_126028″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Shikhar Dhawan scrapped his way to 41 before being run out[/caption]

For the Tigers, it was emblematic of a strangling display, their dedication to the cause evident in the fact that it was the bowler Mahmudullah who chased, slid, and threw to bring about the dismissal.

Bangladesh innings

4.1, Deepak Chahar to Mohammad Naim, SIX

Defending 148, India were on the back foot going into the chase, and got the strong start they needed to get them back into the contest, with Deepak Chahar winkling out Liton Das in the first over and the second, third, and fourth going by boundary-less. Mohammad Naim in particular had been tied down, crawling to 8 off 14 balls, but broke the shackles with glorious effect at the start of the fifth, stylishly flicking Chahar off his toes over cow corner for the first six of the innings.

[caption id=”attachment_126029″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Mohammad Naim started ticking after a glorious shot for six[/caption]

Keeping an in-form bowler on for a third over inside the powerplay is a fraught decision for any captain. Bangladesh more than doubled their score in overs 5-6, and Rohit might have gotten his call wrong on this occasion.

9.3, Yuzvendra Chahal to Mushfiqur Rahim, no run

Yuzvendra Chahal’s first two overs were the kind leg-spinners dream of. Every ball coming out as intended and landing where expected, the lines of attack shifting subtly from delivery to delivery so the batsman was unable to attack or even rotate. Two runs and a wicket came from them, but Chahal would have doubled his tally of scalps had Rohit sent an LBW appeal against Mushfiqur Rahim upstairs midway through the 10th over. Instead, India lost their review three balls later to a speculative caught-behind shout. The horse had bolted, and Mushfiqur went on to play a match-winning hand.



18.4, Khaleel Ahmed to Mushfiqur Rahim, FOUR

Without Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan, and against a team they hadn’t beaten in eight previous attempts, Bangladesh came into the game as heavy underdogs, and though India batted at walking pace and spurned chances in the field, it’s rare for a team of their quality to not at least be in with a shout heading into the final stages.

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They clawed and scrapped and spun their web, and slowly gained the advantage. With 10 deliveries left, Bangladesh needed two a ball. Four balls later, and the game was all but over, Mushfiqur’s four in four leaving them needing four to win off the last. The second was the pick of them, Mushfiqur moving left and right before stooping to scoop it fine. When Bangladesh needed a clutch performance from a senior player, Mushfiqur, as he so often does, stood up. The Tigers are much more than their two star players.

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