Thanks to Michael Bracewell's brilliant bowling and Rachin Ravindra's brilliant batting, New Zealand defeated Bangladesh by five wickets in a thrilling Champions Trophy match on Monday and confirmed their place in the semi-finals. With this victory, India's entry into the semi-finals has also been confirmed.
Bracewell was adjudged Player of the Match. He broke the back of Bangladesh with four wickets. Bangladesh scored 236 runs losing 9 wickets. New Zealand chased down the target with 23 balls to spare thanks to Ravindra's brilliant 112 and Tom Latham's crucial 55 runs. With this win, New Zealand joined India in the semi-finals, while Pakistan and Bangladesh have been knocked out of the tournament.
Batting first, winning the toss, the Bangladesh team got off to a good start with opener Tanzid Hasan and captain Najmul Hossain Shanto. Tanjid attacked the New Zealand bowlers from the beginning and hit a four and a six off Kyle Jamieson in the second over. However, New Zealand soon bounced back and managed to stop the Bangladeshi batsmen in the middle overs.
Shanto and Tanjid's 45-run partnership ended when Bracewell dismissed Tanjid for 21 off his second ball. Mehidy Hasan Miraz hit a six off Bracewell. He seemed to be in a good rhythm. However, he was dismissed in the 12th over.
Tauheed Hriday, who batted well against India, was dismissed by Bracewell for just seven runs. Since then, wickets have been falling, Mushfiqur Rahim became a victim of Bracewell. Despite his best efforts, Shanto was dismissed for 77 off 110 balls.
New Zealand, chasing the target of 237 runs, started poorly. Taskin Ahmed dismissed Will Young for a duck in the first over. Nahid Rana sent Kane Williamson to the pavilion in the fourth over. The Kiwi team was in trouble after losing two wickets for just 15 runs. However, Ravindra played the best innings for New Zealand and gave the team victory.
Brief Scores:
Bangladesh 236/9 in 50 overs (Najmul Hossain Shanto 77, Jaiker Ali 45; Michael Bracewell 4-26) vs New Zealand 240/5 in 46.1 overs (Rachin Ravindra 112, Tom Latham 55; Taskin Ahmed 1-28, Nahid Rana 1-43)
--IANS