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'Aaj to dono taraf Tigers kamal kar diya' - Fans react to Bangladesh's thumping 6-wicket win over Afghanistan in 2023 World Cup

Tigers outperformed their opponents in both batting and bowling and it is fair enough to say that they have made it a pure one-sided affair. 

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Mathew K
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BAN vs AFG

BAN vs AFG

Bangladesh opened their 2023 ODI World Cup campaign with a resounding 6-wicket win over Afghanistan at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Saturday, October 7. The Tigers outperformed their opponents in both batting and bowling and it is fair enough to say that they have made it a pure one-sided affair. 

After being put into bat first, the Afghanistan openers got them off to a solid start. However, Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan brought himself into the attack and took two quick wickets to turn the match in their favour. He broke the 47-run first-wicket partnership between Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran. A few over later, the left-arm spinner removed Rahmat Shah to leave the opponents in trouble. 

Mehidy Hasan Miraz also joined the party as he put pressure on the Afghan batters with dot balls before picking up his first wicket of Hashmatullah Shahidi in the 25th over. The Afghanistan skipper's 18-ball 38 sucked the momentum away from Afghanistan. The very next over Shakib sent Najibullah Zadran back into the hut to ensure that the opposition did not come back into the game. Shakib and Mehidy Hasan finished with three wickets as Bangladesh bowled Afghanistan for 156 in 37.2 overs. 

Mehidy Hasan's all-round brilliance gives Bangladesh a clinical win 

Chasing a paltry total, Bangladesh lost a couple of early wickets but Mehidy Hasan's all-round brilliance rescued them from a collapse. The 25-year-old stitched a nearly 100-run partnership with Najmul Hossain Shanto and put Bangladesh in the driver's seat. The two departed soon after making their half-centuries, but by then the game was in their complete control. Captain Shakib and wicketkeeper batter Mushfiqur Rahim got them over the line by 6 wickets with over 15 overs to spare. 

Speaking after the match, Player of the Match Mehidy Hasan said: "It’s a great moment for me, I’ve done a lot of hard work in the past. Credit to the team management because they believed in me. I was a bit cautious, the captain told me to bowl in the right areas. He told me to be consistent and to focus on my own performance so credit to the captain. I took it ball by ball, didn’t look at the runs."

Here's how fans reacted to Bangladesh's win over Afghanistan in 2023 World Cup: 

ODI World Cup 2023 Bangladesh Afghanistan