DHAKA, Bangladesh: Bangladesh bowled out Pakistan for a modest 110 in the opening match of the three-match T20I series at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Sunday.
Pakistan, after being asked to bat first, made a brisk start with openers Fakhar Zaman and Saim Ayub finding early boundaries.
However, the momentum shifted quickly when Taskin Ahmed removed Ayub for six in the second over, reducing Pakistan to 18-1.
Mohammad Haris showed brief promise with a boundary off Mahedi Hasan but was dismissed on the very next ball, leaving the visitors at 32-2.
Captain Salman Ali Agha struggled against Tanzim Hasan Sakib, eventually falling for just three runs, further denting Pakistan’s innings at 36-3.
The pressure continued to mount as Mustafizur Rahman dismissed debutant Hassan Nawaz for a duck in the final over of the powerplay, with Pakistan reeling at 41-4.
Miscommunication between Mohammad Nawaz and Fakhar Zaman led to Nawaz being run out for just two, and Pakistan slipped to 46-5.
Fakhar Zaman tried to anchor the innings with a resilient 44 off 34 balls but was run out after another misunderstanding—this time with Khushdil Shah—leaving Pakistan in deep trouble at 70-6.
Khushdil and Abbas Afridi attempted to rebuild the innings with a 33-run stand, but the scoring rate remained sluggish.
Khushdil departed for 17 off 23 balls, while Abbas added a spirited 22 with three sixes before falling in the final over.
Faheem Ashraf was dismissed for five, and debutant Salman Mirza was run out without scoring as Pakistan were bowled out for 110 in 19.3 overs.
Taskin Ahmed led the bowling charge for Bangladesh with 3 for 24, while Mustafizur Rahman took 2 for 19. Mahedi Hasan and Tanzim Hasan Sakib picked up one wicket each.
Bangladesh now need 111 runs to win the match and take a 1-0 lead in the series. A successful chase would mark their fourth T20I victory over Pakistan.
Bangladesh squad
1 Tanzid Hasan, 2 Parvez Hossain Emon, 3 Litton Das (capt, wk), 4 Towhid Hridoy, 5 Shamim Hossain, 6 Jaker Ali, 7 Mahedi Hasan, 8 Rishad Hossain, 9 Tanzim Hasan, 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur Rahman
Pakistan squad
1 Fakhar Zaman, 2 Saim Ayub, 3 Mohammad Haris (wk), 4 Hasan Nawaz, 5 Salman Agha (capt), 6 Mohammad Nawaz, 7 Khushdil Shah, 8 Faheem Ashraf, 9 Abbas Afridi, 10 Salman Mirza, 11 Abrar Ahmed
