Bangladesh breathed life into their tour of Zimbabwe on Friday, roaring back from a disappointing 32-run opening defeat to thrash the hosts by 34 runs in the second T20I at the Queens Sports Club. This clinical and commanding victory draws the three-match series level at 1-1,
Opting to bat first, the Tigers flew out of the blocks courtesy of a magnificent 120-run opening partnership between Saif Hassan and Tanzid Hasan Tamim, who took the Zimbabwean attack to the cleaners from the get-go. Tanzid top-scored with a fluent 58 off 44 balls, laced with 4 boundaries and 3 sixes, while Saif anchored the platform perfectly with a solid 55 off 45 deliveries, hitting an identical number of boundaries.
However, the momentum ground to a sudden halt across the 15th and 16th overs when both well-set openers departed in quick succession. Their exits triggered a dramatic middle-order collapse in the Tigers’ dugout. Stand-in captain Towhid Hridoy fell for a duck, followed swiftly by the cheap dismissals of Parvez Hossain Emon and Nurul Hasan Sohan. In a blink of an eye—spanning just 11 deliveries—Bangladesh slipped from a commanding 120 for 1 to a reeling 141 for 5.
Yasir Ali Chowdhury steadied the ship, remaining unbeaten on a crucial 22 off 12 balls, but the defining drama was reserved for the final over. All-rounder Mohammad Saifuddin unleashed absolute carnage on Zimbabwean pacer Brad Evans in the 20th over. In an extraordinary display of power-hitting, Saifuddin cleared the boundary for four consecutive monstrous sixes off the first four balls. His explosive late-order cameo single-handedly propelled Bangladesh to a formidable total of 186 for 5.
While Richard Ngarava finished as the pick of the hosts’ bowlers with an economical 2-24, Evans endured a nightmarish outing. Despite picking up two wickets, Evans conceded a staggering 65 runs—surpassing Ngarava’s previous record of 62 to register the most expensive T20I bowling figures in Zimbabwe’s cricket history.
Chasing a mountain of 187 runs for victory, Zimbabwe’s reply never found its rhythm and the hosts were effectively knocked out of the contest during a disastrous Powerplay. They lost 4 quick wickets early on and slumped to a catastrophic 50 for 5 within the first nine overs.
Skipper Sikandar Raza attempted a fiery counter-attack with a brief 12-ball 28, and Ryan Burl top-scored with a 19-ball 29, but their lone resistance was nowhere near enough to salvage the chase.
Bangladesh’s spin twins comfortably dictated proceedings on a helpful track. Leg-spinner Rishad Hossain led the wreckage, dismantling the Zimbabwean middle order to finish with phenomenal career-best figures of 4-26. Off-spinner Mahedi Hasan provided brilliant tandem support, squeezing the scoring rate to claim a clinical 3-24 as Zimbabwe were eventually bundled out for 152 in 19.4 overs.
