The Asian sides, Bangladesh and India faced off against each other at the MCG for what was branded as a ‘David vs Goliath’ battle. However, Goliath prevailed this time, emerging as the victor! India confidently knocked Bangladesh out of the 2015 ICC World Cup as they won the match by 109 runs. Despite the victory, the match was shrouded with controversy due to umpiring errors that left a sour taste in Bangladesh’s mouth.
India won the toss and decided to bat first. Dhawan and Rohit scored 75 in the opening partnership before Shakib dismissed Dhawan(30) after the stumping from Mushfiq. Rubel picked up Kohli’s wicket as Mushfiq caught the ball behind the stumps at 79 in the next over. Taskin got rid of Rahane(19) as Shakib took the catch at extra cover. 115/3 after 28 overs and the Tigers looked to control the tempo of the match.
Raina and Sharma scored 122 in the 4th wicket and steadied the run rate for India. In the 40th over, Sharma was caught at deep mid wicket from a waist-height full toss when the umpire decided to call it a no-ball. Replays showed that the umpires had been wrong with the decision and pundits Michael Holding and Ajit Agarkar later remarked that it was a harsh decision from the field umpires that enabled India to get the extra runs.
Mashrafe dismissed Raina(65) in the 44th over as India were 237/4. Sharma scored 137 from 126 balls, hitting 14 fours and three sixes before Taskin bowled him. Taskin also dismissed Dhoni(6) after Mushfiq took another splendid catch. However, lackluster bowling and fielding from the Tigers enabled India to pile up a mammoth total of 302/6 after 50 overs. Taskin picked up 3 wickets for Bangladesh giving away 69 runs.
Chasing 302, Tamim confidently started the proceedings, hitting four boundaries and scoring 25 before he was dismissed by Yadav, after a low catch from Dhoni. Imrul was shaky with the bat and was run out from Jadeja’s effort following Tamim’s dismissal. 33/2 after 6.4 overs and the Tigers were crumbling under pressure.
In-form batsman Mahmudullah hit two boundaries and scored 21 before Dhawan took the catch at long-leg, pulling off a controversial juggling act close to the boundary ropes. Soumya(29) was dismissed by Shami as Dhoni took a diving catch to his left! Bangladesh lost Shakib’s wicket as he gave a catch to Shami at short third man from Jadeja’s delivery. 104/5 and Bangladesh were in trouble.
Mushfiq(27)Â scored 35 in the 6th wicket with Sabbir before being dismissed by Yadav after another catch by Dhoni! Nasir and Sabbir scored 50 runs in the 7th wicket partnership, aiming for a comeback. It was short-lived as Nasir was dismissed by Jadeja after scoring 35, hitting six boundaries.
Within the next 4 runs, Bangladesh lost their last 3 batsmen Mashrafe, Rubel and Sabbir. Yadav picked up two wickets and Sharma picked up one. Bangladesh were all out scoring 193 in 45 overs. Yadav picked up 4 wickets for India.
During the presentation ceremony Mashrafe remarked that his team would come back stronger in the upcoming months and thanked the Bangladeshi supporters for coming to the matches and cheering for them. Dhoni credited his players and the support staff for reaching the semifinals. Man of the match Rohit Sharma said that he was determined to put runs on the board and was willing to bat longer to put his team in a good situation. He hailed the bowlers for doing a fantastic job!
The win enabled India to qualify for the semis at the SCG where they will play against either Pakistan or Australia. Bangladesh were unlucky today with a few umpiring decisions as well as poor fielding and shot selection of some of their batsmen.
However, their performance has been nothing short of brilliant throughout the tournament. They will bounce back hopefully and stun the cricketing world with more wins against stronger opponents in near future!