Md Anwar Ullah
Tigers’ high hopes was demolished to celebrate back-to-back win in the ICC Men’s T-20 World Cup, when Quinton de Kock and Rilee Rossouw appeared as the devastating ‘Cyclone Sitrang’ and South Africa just outplayed them (Tigers) by 104 runs on Thursday.
Held at the Sydney Cricket Stadium, winning the toss South Africa set a mammoth target of 206 runs for Bangladesh to win.
After the defeat, eventually no hope is left for Bangladesh to make room in the next phase when they will have to face Pakistan, India and Zimbabwe in their next three group leg matches.
Rilee Rossouw blazed with 109 off 56 balls and Quinton de Kock fired 63 off 38 balls, as Tigers’ all endeavors were finished.
It was not hard to imagine that Bangladesh would suffer defeat but that would be so humiliating was not at all expected when the Tigers experienced an unkind reality of T-20 cricket.
South Africa in fact taught a lesson to Tigers how to play the T-20 cricket, as in the both bowling and batting departments they just displayed a real approach of the format.
Bangladesh, despite making very convincing start with both bowling and batting, making the breakthrough on second runs of South African innings. During their batting scored 17 runs from first over but failed to keep up the momentum, as South Africa just outplayed them (Bangladesh) in both occasions.
It was simply a dream start with the ball when Taskin Ahmed struck with his last delivery of the first over to get out opener Temba Bavuma.
It was an excellent length delivery moving away to off stump Bavuma trying to push it to but the ball went to keeper Nurul Hassan Shohan’s gloves kissing the edge of the bat.
As the tigers sounded well in the very first over, evidently it was expected that they were going to repeat the presentation of their first match they offered against Netherlands pushing them under tremendous pressure taking four runs for 15 runs and finally bundled out them for 144 runs.
But on the day the Tigers bowlers could not carry on the initial drive when De Kock and Rossouw appeared with devastating mood to score 168 runs in the second wicket stand from 81 balls just demolishing the Bangladesh bowling.
De Kock hammered three sixes and seven boundaries to score 63 runs off 38 ball when Rossouw was more hostile mood to score 109 runs from 56 ball with cracking eight sixes and seven fours. None of the bowlers of Bangladesh had any respect from the Rossouw and D Kock’s storming batting when only Mustafizur Rahman was a bit economy to concede 25 runs in his four over spells and allowed only one six and a boundary. Chasing to an enormous target Tigers despite making an impressive start with Soumya Sarkar and Nazmul Hossain Shanto scored 17 runs in the first over. But they could not bring the partnership a long when Soumya got out for 15.
Soumya , who looked in aggressive mood to response equally to the Proteas to seal his position when he smashed two sixes in his 15 runs innings.
But the batting prodigy trying to swipe a Anrich Nortje ball which was fully outside the off, Soumya crossed the line and the ball just edged through to the wicketkeeper and after that none of the Tigers’ batter could mend the damage and were losing wickets in a regular interval. Finally they were booked for 101 runs to suffer a humiliating 104 runs defeat.
