5th ODI, Ban vs WI: Bangladesh beat WI by 2 wickets; win series 3-2

Bangladesh held its nerve to beat West Indies by two wickets and win only a second one-day international cricket series between them on Saturday. A day after the home team failed to chase down 211 and West Indies tied the series 2-2, Bangladesh labored to surpass West Indies' total of 217.
But Nasir Hossain's second boundary, a cut off Andre Russell, earned Bangladesh the victory and set off partying by the home team and the crowd of 24,000, among them Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. Bangladesh finished on 221-8 in 44 overs, after West Indies was all out for 217 in the 48th.The only previous one-day series Bangladesh won against West Indies was in 2009 in the Caribbean. Mahmudullah, the man of the match, and captain Mushfiqur Rahim shared a key 91-run, fourth-wicket partnership.
They came together after Bangladesh was reduced to 30-3. Mahmudullah made 48 before he was bowled by Sunil Narine for 48 off 45 balls, including seven boundaries. Less than overs later, Mushfiqur was out, too, also bowled by Narine. Mushfiqur scored 44 off 56 balls, also with seven fours. In the same 25th over, Mominul Haque, before he'd scored, was dropped by West Indies captain Darren Sammy at short cover.
Mominul Haque (25) and Hossain (39 not out) would lead Bangladesh to the brink of victory before Haque was lbw to Narine at 186-6 in the 39th over. Kemar Roach claimed the wickets of Sohag Gazi (19) and Abdur Razzak (duck) in the same over, but at 215-8, Bangladesh was virtually home.
"I was worried when I got out," Mahmudullah said, "but Nasir played well. I was nervous in the dressing room." Roach took 5-56 and Narine 3-38, and Sammy said the damage was done earlier when West Indies should have put up a more competitive 240 or so.
Kieron Pollard and Darren Bravo smashed half centuries to steer West Indies out of early trouble. Pollard hit 85 and Bravo 51 in a 132-run stand for the fourth wicket after the tourists lost three early wickets for 17 runs.
Pollard belted eight sixes and five boundaries in 74 balls before he was bowled by part-time spinner Mominul Haque. Bravo faced 108 balls and hit three boundaries and a six. Opener Chris Gayle's poor form continued, scoring 2 before being caught by Nasir Hossain off Shafiul Islam.
Islam, playing his first match in the series, claimed 3-31, Mominul Haque took 2-14 and Mahmudullah 2-38. The tour finishes with a Twenty20 on the same ground on Monday.

Darren Sammy defends under-performing Chris Gayle after the series loss

Captain Darren Sammy was left defending the under-performing opener Chris Gayle after the West Indies slid to a 2-3 defeat in the five-match One-Day International series against Bangladesh here. The left-handed Gayle, one of the finest limited overs batsmen in the contemporary game, managed just 72 runs from five innings in the series as the Caribbean side's batting struggled throughout.
Sammy contended, however, that the team's performances did not centre around one player. "I would like to see all my players perform. Things don't always go the way you want them to. Obviously Chris is a very experienced player and I know he will come back good anytime," Sammy told a media conference Saturday night. "Credit to the Bangladesh team for the way they bowled at him throughout this series. They had a plan and they stuck to it. The team doesn't revolve around one person, it's a collective set of people to go out there and do what is necessary for us to win.He added: "I don't blame people, I've always said that cricket is a team sport. We've got to pull together as a team. It's not every day the same people will perform and today we got a performance from (Kieron) Pollard and (Darren) Bravo and Kemar (Roach) got five wickets. We just need more performances from the team and that would make us more successful." The West Indies entered the series with their batting as their strength but failed to live up to expectations.
They were dismissed in the opening ODI in Khulna for 199 to lose by seven wickets and crashed for a paltry 132 in the second game, chasing 293 for victory. Even when they chased a moderate 228 to win the third game, they needed Marlon Samuels' century in order to triumph after the batting struggled again, and they mustered just 211 off 50 overs in the fourth game before their bowlers defended well.
Saturday, Pollard emerged from poor form to slam a stroke-filled 85 while Bravo, perhaps the most consistent batsman in the series, scored 51. The pair added 132 for the fourth wicket to repair the innings after the Windies had slumped to 17 for three. "The difference between the two teams is that we lost. We have not played our best cricket but we still put ourselves in a position to win the series," Sammy pointed out.

HURRICANES OVERCOME BRISBANE HEAT

An unbeaten half-century from Travis Birt allowed Hobart Hurricanes to overcome Brisbane Heat’s stiff target of 173 in the Big Bash game, played at Gabba.

Opting to bat first, the Heat piled on a reasonable total on the board, courtesy strong displays from Joe Burns (44) and Daniel Christian ( 49). Thisara Perera, the team’s overseas Sri Lankan player, also played his part with an 8-ball 22-run cameo.

However, the Hurricanes achieved victory comfortably, with all batters contributing. Openers Tim Paine and Jonathan Wells added a quick-fire stand of 50 before Birt and Owais Shah stood in an unbeaten partnership of 95 to help their side claim an easy 6-wicket win.

England completed an overwhelming seven-wicket victory against India at Kolkata to win the third Test and take an unbeatable 2-1 lead in the four-match series.

It took the tourists just 55 minutes to wrap things up after the Men in Blue resumed their second innings from 239 for 9. Ravichandran Ashwin added 8 more runs to his overnight score of 83, but ran out of  partners in the as Pragyan Ojha was cleaned up by James Anderson.

Despite the Indians picking up three quick wickets, England’s hefty first innings lead meant that they had little trouble in overhauling the 41-run target. Alastair Cook was named as the Player of the Match for his impressive 190-run effort. The final Test will be played at Nagpur from Thursday.

West Indies skipper, Darren Sammy, expressed disappointment after his side suffered a two-wicket defeat in the deciding fifth ODI against Bangladesh.

The tourists performed poorly with the bat, and were restricted on a lowly 217. In reply, the Bengali Tigers were halted early on before the middle-order came to the party and guided the team to an impressive series win.

The defeat has taken the gloss off a promising year in Windies cricket, in which they lifted the World T20 trophy, and further claimed four consecutive Test wins. "We haven't played our best cricket in this series but we still were in with a chance to win the series. I would never blame anyone. This has been a good year for us. We would have loved to win this series but we didn't."

T20 CALLS FOR ANAMUL, MOMINUL AND SOHAG GAZI

Bangladesh Cricket Board on Saturday named its squad for the one-off T20 International against the West Indies, to be played here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Monday, December 10, 2012.

The BCB selectors have picked up three uncapped players as well in the 14-man squad. The 21-year-old Barisal off-spinner Sohag Gazi, who made impressive Test and ODI debuts in the preceding series against the same Windies opposition, has been named in the hosts’ squad for the T20 encounter as well. The other two Bangladesh players earning their maiden T20 International call ups are the 19-year-old second ODI centurion Anamul Haque and left-handed all-rounder Mominul Haque.

The 20-year-old Sylhet Division seamer Abul Hasan, who scored a century playing at No. 10 in the Khulna Test last month, is the only novice to miss out. The rookie fast bowler, who made his Test and ODI debuts during the ongoing home series against West Indies, is yet to recover from the side strain he had picked up during Bangladesh’s 160-run win in the second ODI in Khulna.

Veteran all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who has been advised a six-week rest due to a stress reaction on his right tibia, expectedly was not picked. The side strain had also kept the left-hander out of the recently concluded five-match ODI series against the Windies, which his side won 3-2.

Former Bangladesh skipper Mohammad Ashraful, batsman Junaid Siddique, and all-rounder Farhad Reza, who were all part of the squad that played the World T20 in Sri Lanka a couple of months ago, failed to make the cut this time around.

Mushfiqur Rahim, who was given the reins of the Bengali Tigers in September last year, continues to lead the side.

As far as the shortest format of the game is concerned, the Tigers have had a quite successful 2012 year, winning four out of eight games. The one-off T20I against the Windies tomorrow will be Bangladesh’s last international appearance this year.

MUSHFIQUR RAHIM HAILS PART-TIME SPINNER MOMINUL HAQUE

Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim has hailed rookie all-rounder Mominul Haque for his impressive show with the ball during his side’s series clinching two-wicket win over the West Indies in the fifth and final One Day International, here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Saturday, December 8, 2012.

After putting West Indies into bat, Bangladesh's nerves could have frayed when big-hitting Kieron Pollard began his assault, smashing eight sixes and five fours in an innings that was threatening to take the series away from the home side. But the Tigers came out on top, courtesy Mominul Haque’s part-time spin.

With his spin-attack put to the sword by belligerent Pollard, Mushfiqur tossed the ball to little-known Mominul Haque. After clearing the front foot, Pollard went for a big swish off Mominul, but the ball sneaked below his bat, hitting the off stump.

Mominul struck back on the first ball of his next over, having the opposition skipper and the man of the match of the previous game, Darren Sammy, caught by Jahurul Islam in the slip for just 2.

"Mominul is a fighting cricketer," said Mushfiqur at the post-match press conference after his side’s series two-wicket win over the West Indies on Saturday.

"That is how he is, one of my favourite young players. He takes up the challenge so when I gave him the bowling, I told him to just do what you can, don't worry about the outcome," he added further.

The rookie Chittagong left-hander, along with two other uncapped players Sohag Gazi and Anamul Haque, has also been named in Bangladesh’s 14-man squad for the one-off T20 International against the Windies.

Mushfiqur also had a word of praise for the right-arm medium pacer Shafiul Islam, who was a last minute replacement for injured Mashrafe Mortaza.

"I think 70% of [credit for] the win goes to him," the home skipper said of the Bogra seamer who returned with figures of 3 for 31 in nine overs. "He bowled so well in such a final match, and it is not easy to bowl against Gayle, Pollard and Samuels," he added further.

The only T20 encounter will be played at the same Shere Bangla National Stadium of Mirpur on Monday, December 10, 2012.

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BANGLADESH DESERVED TO WIN THE ODI SERIES AGAINST WEST INDIES, SAYS MUSHFIQUR RAHIM

Ecstatic after his team clinched the five-match ODI series against West Indies 3-2, with a two-wicket win in the series decider at Dhaka on Saturday, Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim has said that his side deserved to win the series.

Going into the crucial fifth and final One Day International, with the series levelled at 2-2, the hosts once again outgunned Darren Sammy and men in all three departments to win the match by two wickets and script their first ever ODI series win over the Windies at home.

While speaking to media reporters after the series clinching victory, the Bangladesh skipper said that his side won the series through skill and by building up towards peak form over the past one month

"We deserved to win this ODI series, judging by our performance since the Tests and our cricket skills," Mushfiqur said at the post-match presentation ceremony on Saturday.

After putting the tourists into bat in the series finale at the Shere Bangla National Stadium of Mirpur, the home attack kept the opposition batsmen, except Kieron Pollard (85) and Darren Bravo (51), under check from the word go. After the Windies were reeling at 17 for 3, the Bravo-Pollard duo buckled down to add 132 runs for the fourth wicket and restore some normalcy. But a lower order capitulation ruined their efforts as the whole West Indies team was bowled out for a middling 217 in 48 overs.

The Tigers also got off to a tumultuous start, losing openers Tamim Iqbal (8) and Anamul Haque (0) inside the first three overs of their chase, with only nine on the board. No. 3 Jahurul Islam also departed early, scoring just 10 runs. However, a 91-run stand between Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah for the fourth wicket put the hosts back on track, as they chased down the 218-run target in 44 overs, with two wickets to spare.

Conceding his side’s struggles in fielding as well as with the bat in the third and fourth ODI, the home skipper said, "Today our only plan was to get it right in all three departments."

"This is what gave us the wins in the first two games of the ODI series. In this final game, we told everyone that we have to make sure we give 100% effort," Mushfiqur went on to add.

The two outfits are next scheduled to play a one-off T20 International at the same Shere Bangla venue on Monday, December 10, 2012.