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LAHORE, May 31 (APP):Aggressive half-centuries by Sahibzada Farhan and Hasan Nawaz and spotless bowling performance by Abrar Ahmed helped Pakistan seal the T20I series against Bangladesh as the visitors could only score 144-9 in pursuit of 202 runs. Pakistan have an unassailable lead of 2-0 in the three-match series.
An unbeaten knock of 51 (26) and Sahibzada Farhan’s 71 (41) led Pakistan to yet another big total of 201-6 runs for the second match in the running against Bangladesh in the second T20I and the total proved too big to surmount as Bangladesh batting line-up proved house of cards against disciplined Pakistan bowling as they crumbled to
Tanzim Hasan Sakib 50 (31) top-scored for Bangladesh in the lower order as he hit one boundary and five 6s to give the team total some respectability after they were reeling at 77-7 in the 10th over. Tanzid Hasan hit 33 (19) at the top while Mehidy Hasan Miraz 23 (17) showed some resistance in the middle but Bangladesh could not recover from the jolts of losing five wickets in the space of 17 balls.
Bangladesh had an excellent start to the innings as Tanzid and Parvez Hossain Emon powered Bangladesh to 44 off 3.5 overs but the fall of Parvez off an adventurous shot to clear mid-off against Haris Rauf brought his downfall as Hasan Ali took a brilliant catch while back paddling quite a few yards. Parvez wicket opened the flood-gates as Bangladesh batters fell one after another. Abrar Ahmed was the destroyer-in-chief as he picked three wickets in 10 balls.
Haris Rauf who claimed 23-1 in two overs put brakes to an excellent start by the Bangladesh tigers but a wicket each by Hasan Ali and Faheem Ashraf put the visitors on the back-foot. Tanzid was unlucky to be caught at short fine leg by Abrar Ahmed off Faheem Ashraf while Litton was also out to a blinder held by Haris Rauf off Hasan Ali. Abrar Ahmed was introduced to the attack and the Bangladesh bowlers found him hard to decode as he claimed three quick wickets for 19 runs. Shadab, Khushdil and Saim Ayub also claimed one wicket each.
Bangladesh looked down the barrel with the total at 77-7 in 10 overs but it was Tanzim Hasan who showed great resistance and scored a defiant half-century to give the total some respectability and with his fall in the penultimate over off Saim Ayub brough curtains to the Bangladesh innings as they lost by 57 runs as the injured Shoriful Islam could not come out to bat.
Earlier, Hasan Nawaz built on the foundation laid down by Sahibzada Farhan and Mohammad Haris in the beginning as the pair hit 103 runs off 54 balls. The second wicket fell at 115-2 in the 11th over when Mohammad Haris fell for 41 (25) off Tanzim.
Sahibzada Farhan and Mohammad Haris’s partnership was the high watermark of the Pakistan innings as both batters played freely and achieved a strike-rate of above 12 runs per over. Sahibzada Farhan carried his good form with the bat from the PSL X as he hit yet another commanding half century laced with four boundaries and six 6s. He maintained a strike-rate of beyond 180. Pakistan were placed well to post beyond 220 when he got out in the 12th over with the team total at 121-3. Mohammad Haris complemented his partner with a knock containing four boundaries and two 6s as he carried a strike rate of 164.
Hasan Nawaz was promoted to bat at No. 4 in the batting order and he continued from where he had left in the previous night and went to hit an unbeaten 51 off 26 balls at a strike-rate of 196.4. Hasan hit two boundaries and three 6s in a. Hasan used his brains and did not rely on the brawn only as he ensure that the team reached a total of 201-6 as wickets kept falling around him. Captain Salman Ali Agha hit 19 off 12 balls with three boundaries before he was trapped lbw while repeating a stroke over the head of short fine-leg off Hasan Mahmud. Vice-captain Shadab Khan spent a painful time at the pitch as he scored 7 runs off 9 balls and was dismissed off a miscued hit over mid-wicket off Hasan Mahmud.
No Bangladesh bowler could impress with the ball except for Tanzim Hasan Sakib whose variations kept the batters under check as he picked a brace for 36 runs and kept Pakistan batters quiet to a great extent. Hasan Mahmud also picked two wickets for 47 runs. Tanzim and Hasan Mahmud put the brakes on the scoring towards the close of the innings and did not let the batsmen play freely. Shoriful Islam could bowl only three balls into the second over when he had to leave the ground with a niggle and Shamim Hossain had to bowl 3.3 over in his place and kept things under control and conceded 28 runs without any wicket.
Sahibzada Farhan was adjudged player of the match for his match defining knock of 74 runs. Pakistan will meet Bangladesh in the last match of the T20I series on June 1 (Sunday night).