India vs Bangladesh 2019: Deepak Chahar finesse trumps Mohammad Naim heroics as India lift series
Deepak Chahar produced a bowling masterclass as India registered an encouraging 30-run victory over Bangladesh in the topsy-turvy series decider in Nagpur. The proficient quick bagged a six-wicket haul, including a magnificent hat-trick, while conceding only 7 runs to achieve the best-ever figures in T20Is.
Earlier, Shreyas Iyer crafted his way to a glorious half-century to lay the foundation upfront after the hosts were invited to bat first on a placid surface. KL Rahul complemented Iyer wonderfully by stroking an exquisite half-century as India posted a mighty total of 174 on the board.
India were in trouble early as Rohit Sharma's distinct weakness against the incoming delivery was exposed for the umpteenth time, with Shafiul Islam breaching through the Indian skipper's defence to hit timber. Enduring a rough patch, Shikhar Dhawan creamed four delightful boundaries before skying a hoick to mid-on.
Aminul Islam dropped a sitter at backward point, hence gifting Iyer a fortunate reprieve when the batsman was on zero. The prodigious swashbuckler capitalized on the opportunity and marauded the tweakers with utmost disdain henceforth.
In company with KL Rahul, who stroked his way to a well-made 52, Iyer put up a 49-run stand off just 41 balls to set the platform to go big in the final overs. Mahmudullah's decision to introduce off-break bowler Afif Hussain into the attack in the 15th over proved horribly wrong as Iyer smoked three consecutive maximums, laden with flamboyance.
Rishabh Pant was castled while attempting an agricultural slog post which Iyer found long-off to precision four balls later. Despite two quick wickets in the 17th over, Manish Pandey furnished an impactful cameo, a 13-ball 22* that drove India to 174/5 from the stipulated 20 overs.
Chahar jolted Bangladesh early in their chase, removing Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar in quick succession. However, Mohammed Naim, following a watchful beginning, shifted gears midway through his knock to help his side crawl back into the game.
Bangladesh were absolutely gliding towards the target when Chahar prised out Mohammad Mithun in the 13th over, injecting fresh life into the contest. The visitors must have fancied their chances though, with stalwarts Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah to rely on as the equation boiled down to 50 runs off 30 balls. However, medium-pacer Shivam Dube had other ideas.
The rookie provided breakthroughs at crucial junctures, quashing any hopes of a miraculous turnaround. Rahim chopped one on while eyeing a single for a golden duck in the 14th over, while Naim was sent packing with a zipping yorker executed to perfection. The wiery all-rounder also accounted for Afif Hossain, who lobbed him a gentle return catch on the subsequent delivery.
Yuzvendra Chahal finally entered the wickets column, disturbing Mahmudullah's furniture that all but wrapped up a definite win for India. Chahar was thrown the ball in the 18th over, and he struck by removing Shafiul on the final ball of the over, before completing a justified hat-trick, the first-ever by an Indian in T20Is, by removing Mustafizur Rahman and Aminul Islam in the first two balls of the final over.
Brief scores: India 174/5 in 20 overs (Shreyas Iyer 62, KL Rahul 52; Soumya Sarkar 2-29) beat Bangladesh 144 in 19.2 overs (Mohammad Naim 81; Deepak Chahar 6-7, Shivam Dube 3-30) by 30 runs.
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