"Banglawash incoming" - Twitter erupts as Bangladesh go 2-0 up against Australia
Bangladesh scripted history as they recorded a second straight win over Australia to go 2-0 up in the five-match T20I series at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka.
Chasing a 122-run target set by the Aussies batting first, Bangladesh were in a spot of bother at 67/5 in 11.2 overs. But Afif Hossain, who played a cracker of a knock in the last match, played another match-winning knock to take his side home.
He added 56 runs for the sixth wicket with wicket-keeper Nurul Hasan to cruise past the target. Meanwhile, social media was on fire, congratulating the young Bangladesh side soon after they crossed the line.
Here are some reactions:
Afif Hossain's unbeaten 37 takes Bangladesh 2-0 up in the series
Opting to bat first, Australia suffered another batting collapse at the top. They were 31/2 with both openers back in the hut before Mitchell Marsh initiated another resurrection. He played a steady knock alongside Moises Henriques to bail Australia out of danger.
They added 57 runs for the 3rd wicket before Mustafizur Rahman ran down the batting order as they managed only 121/7 in their quota of 20 overs. Mustafizur returned with three wickets while Shoriful Islam picked up two.
Bangladesh were in tatters against Australia's new-ball bowlers chasing a moderate total. They were reduced to 21/2 before Shakib Al Hasan and Mahedi Hasan stitched a small partnership, only for the Aussies to bounce back once again.
However, a match-winning stand between Afif Hossain (37* off 31) and Nurul Hasan (22* off 21) showed maturity to take Bangladesh home and go 1-0 up in the series.
An ecstatic Bangladesh captain Mahmudullah praised Afif and Nurul for showing maturity and taking the side home. Speaking at the end of the match, Mahmudullah said:
"It's very pleasing how Afif and Sohan (Nurul Hasan) stood up and carried till the end, showed a lot of maturity. Bowlers did a very good job to restrict them around 120. Shakib was very crucial with his bowling and batting, shows how valuable he is. Losing few early wickets causes tension in the dressing room but the way Sohan and Afif batted, it took a bit of pressure off us, the dressing room was quite relieved."
"Mustafizur has always been effective in these conditions, Shoriful bowled very well, every bowler chipped in. We are taking each game at a time, we need to stand up and perform to the best of our abilities," he added.
The third T20I of the five-match series is scheduled to take place on August 6 (Friday) at the Shere Bangla National Stadium.