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Sean Williams made 64 runs but it was not enough for Zimbabwe to achieve a rare win over Bangladesh

IN three spells that tested the skill of the Zimbabwe batsmen at the Shere Bangla National Stadium yesterday, Mustafizur Rahman took his third five-wicket haul to ensure Bangladesh’s 3-0 sweep of the one-day international series.

Bangladesh scored 276 for 9 after opting to bat and Zimbabwe could only manage 215 to lose by 61 runs.

Mustafizur conceded boundaries from time to time, but Zimbabwe’s batsmen could not dominate him. There were many plays and misses, and edges that almost carried to the slips. There were several occasions when the ball missed the stumps by a whisker as he got the ball to swing and cut. When he ran in to bowl with Zimbabwe nine wicketsdown, Mashrafe Mortaza gave him eight slips.

Mustafizur’s first two strikes upset the boundary-filled start that Zimbabwe made in the first seven overs. Off the second ball of the chase, Chamu Chibhabha had little clue as Mustafizur got the ball to swing enough to get past his driving arms. Craig Ervine and Regis Chakabva kept finding fours but in the seventh over again, Mustafizur removed Chakabva with a slower delivery that the opening batsmen could only lob to cover.

Ervine fell to Nasir Hossain in the ninth over when he played back to a delivery that didn’t get up as much as he anticipated and he was trapped lbw for 21 off 25 balls.

Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura then joined Sean Williams in an attempt to resurrect the innings and get a measure of the required run-rate. Williams was given a lifeline when substitute fielder Anamul Haque dropped him at mid-off on 23. The two batsmen found boundaries, too, and Mashrafe started to look for his sixth bowler. Sabbir Rahman bowled an excellent delivery to get rid of Chigumbura in the 23rd over after he had added 80 runs for the fourth wicket with Williams. Chigumbura made 45 with six boundaries and was removed before he could open up in a big way.

Zimbabwe could have ended this ODI series without a single fifty from their batsmen had Arafat Sunny not trodden on the stumps in the 30th over when Williams – batting on 49 – was short of the crease.

For the next six overs, Bangladesh had to contend with a dangerous partnership between Malcolm Waller and Williams, but Nasir intervened, taking a head-high catch in the covers to dismiss Waller. Next over, Williams fell to an easy catch at cover after he failed to time a drive off Mashrafe. He made 64 off 84 balls with five fours.

Mustafizur came back to remove Sikandar Raza, who was caught splendidly by Sabbir as he ran from mid-on to mid-off. Next ball, Luke Jongwe holed out at midwicket, but his hat-trick ball was kept away by Graeme Cremer. Later, Mustafizur took a return catch to dismiss Tinashe Panyangara and complete a third five-wicket haul in ODIs; figures that complemented the work of Bangladesh’s opening batsmen.

Earlier, Bangladesh’s innings was split into two parts after they opted to bat. The first part comprised the 147-run opening stand between Imrul Kayes and Tamim Iqbal. It was enough of a base to get close to 300 runs but it wasn’t to be, and the second part saw them restricted to 276 for 9.

Bangladesh; 276 for 9 (Tamim 73, Kayes 73, Mahmudullah 52)

Zimbabwe: 215 (Williams 64, Mustafizur 5-34). – online