Mohammad Naim enjoyed a memorable T20 World Cup debut as he helped save Bangladesh’s place in the competition.
The left-handed opener was brought into the line up to face Oman in a fixture which had been rendered must-win for the Bangladeshis by their opening day loss to Scotland.
His half-century paved the way for a 26-run win over co-hosts in Al Amerat. They now need to beat Papua New Guinea in their final round one fixture on Thursday.
If Scotland beat Oman on the same day, Bangladesh and Scotland will advance to the Super 12 stage in the UAE.
Oman could yet advance at Bangladesh’s expense. If they beat Scotland in the last group match and maintain a higher net run rate, it would be they who progress.
Bangladesh knew their place in the competition was at stake in this game, and their batting effort betrayed signs of nerves.
They were fortunate not to be punished, as Oman dropped three presentable chances. Jatinder Singh spilled one on the boundary for six.
Kashyap Prajapati was twice culpable, each time putting down Naim. The opener made the most of his reprieves, as he top scored with 64 from 51.
Thanks to Naim and Shakib Al Hasan, who made 42 from 29 balls before being expertly run out by Aqib Ilyas, Bangladesh were able to cobble together 153 before they were bowled out of the last ball of the innings. Bilal Khan was the pick of the home bowlers, as he took 3-18.
Bangladesh were scarcely less erratic in the field. Mustafizur, their most experienced bowler, sent down five wides in his first over and was hit for a six. He then dropped a catch in the next over.
Even Mahmudullah, their captain, was jittery. He dropped Jatinder on 10. The Oman opener went on to make 40 from 33 balls, and while he was at the wicket Oman looked to be in with a shout of chasing the target.
Once he did depart, though, Oman’s chase faltered in the face of Bangladesh’s spin bowlers. They finished their 20 overs on 127-9.
In the first match of day three of the tournament, Scotland had consolidated their opening day shock of Bangladesh by beating PNG.
Richie Berrington, who is behind only Mohammed Nabi and Shakib Al Hasan in the ICC rankings for T20 internationals, was the star of the 17-run win.
The 34-year-old hit 70 in 49 balls. Included in that were sixes which measured 97m and 87m, which were the two largest in the tournament so far. His effort set the platform for Scotland’s total of 165-9.
PNG fell to 35-5 in reply and, although Norman Vanua hit 47 to help stage a recovery, Josh Davey took four wickets to take Scotland to a comfortable win.
