Bangladesh V India 1st ODI,2004,Chittagong

Bangladesh V India 1st ODI,2004,Chittagong
Match day:23 December 2004
Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pak) and Mahbubur Rahman (Ban)
Player of the match: Mohammad Kaif (Ind)
Bangladesh won the toss and elected to field
MS Dhoni and Joginder Sharma (Ind) both made their ODI debuts.

An indisciplined India allowed minnows Bangladesh to come too close for comfort before scripting a thrilling 11-run victory in the first one-day international cricket match here today.

Chasing a target of 246, the hosts relied on a blistering unbeaten 50 by Khaled Mashud to stage a remarkable comeback before the Indians restricted them to 234 for eight to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The home team paid the price for launching the onslaught a little too late against an Indian bowling attack which lacked discipline, bowling as many as 17 wides and seven no-balls.

The visitors had the game under control right through before Mashud’s 39-ball 50 very nearly turned the contest on its head with captain Habibul Bashar (65) being the other notable contributor.

Put in to bat, middle-order batsman Mohammad Kaif rose to the occasion with a well-paced half century that helped India recover from a top-order collapse and post a competitive 245 for eight in the face of some disciplined bowling by the hosts.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Mashud then led the hosts’ fight in the final stages as Bangladesh, needing 45 runs off the last two overs, plundered 33 runs to reach 234 for eight.

Mashud hit four fours and a six as he shared two vital partnerships that took the team closer to the Indian total.

He added 40 off 33 balls with Khaled Mahmud for the eighth wicket and then 34 off 16 balls with Tapash Baisya (7 n.o.) for the unfinished ninth wicket.

Sridharan Sriram picked up three for 43 with his left-arm spinners even as Bangladesh showed temerity in the face of consistent pressure applied by the experienced visitors.

Till Mashud came along, however, captain Bashar had to wage a lone battle with a composed 65 as wickets kept falling at regular intervals at the other end.

In the end, it was not a meek capitulation like in the second innings of the second Test at the same venue earlier this week.

Bangladesh showed more toughness as they kept themselves in the reckoning till the skipper’s fall at 156 for five in the 41st over.

Bashar himself was guilty of a reckless shot as he tried to heave and ended up top-edging Sriram for a simple catch to Rahul Dravid at long off.

Mashud made a last-ditch attempt as he plundered 14 runs with two fours and a six off debutant Joginder Sharma in the penultimate over. But 28 runs off the last six balls proved too big a task.

For Sriram it was a fine comeback since he last played in a one-dayer in 2000 in Sharjah. As a paradox, Sriram began as a spinner in his junior days before graduating to the opener’s role.

The experiment of promoting Mohammad Rafique as a pinch hitting opener came a cropper as the batsman was gobbled up by a spectacular catch by Yuvraj Singh.

Nafis Iqbal then ran himself out when trying to take advantage of an overthrow.

Mohammad Ashraful also could not live up to the expectations that had risen sky high following his brilliant century in the second Test. And there was a rush of blood in his and all other dismissals of the young team.

Bashar, who had a nightmare of a time with the bat in the two Tests, finally began to show some form and it came at the right time for his team.

The captain took his time to settle down but once the ship was steadied he began to play some exquisite shots. A flick off Sourav Ganguly brought the first boundary after a period of lull.

Bashar seemed more at ease against the left-arm spin of Sriram, as he lofted over the head and even an inside out cover drive.

He became the second Bangladeshi to cross the 1,000 mark in one-dayers when he reached 42.

Aftab Ahmed provided good support with 30 off 48 balls and the fourth wicket was worth 64 runs.

But the chase was dented as Sriram bowled a teasing line to induce the errors and keep the run flow in check.

The required rate began to creep above six and it began to play on the batsmen’s nerves.

Earlier, a well-paced half century from Kaif and some lusty hitting by the tailenders helped India blunt a spirited performance by Bangladesh.

The Indian total owed to the two half centuries from middle-order batsman Kaif and vice-captain Rahul Dravid, supported by good use of the long handle by Ajit Agarkar and Irfan Pathan in the closing stages.

Kaif (80) and Dravid (53) added 128 runs for the fourth wicket that lifted the Indian innings from 45 for three before Agarkar provided the late thrust with his 24-ball 25.

Pathan (21) rounded off the innings with an effortless six to square leg as 42 runs came in the last four overs.

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