England snatch victory from the jaws of defeat

England managed to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat when they bowled out Bangladesh for 288 and came out in front by 21 runs in the first game of the 3-match ODI series at Mirpur under the lights.

Jake Ball was the highest wicket-taker for England today, and he grabbed 5-51 in 9.5 overs. Adil Rashid gave him good support with 4-49 in nine overs.

For Bangladesh, Imrul made 112 while Shakib nearly took his team home with his quick-fire 79.

England debutant Ball picked up his fifth scalp of the match when he took the last Bangladeshi wicket to fall. Ball's slower delivery was too good for Taskin as the Tigers pacer edged this slog to the keeper.

Bangladesh lost their ninth wicket in the 46 over when Shafiul Islam was run out for naught.

Mashrafe was the seventh wicket to fall for Bangladesh. Tigers captain edged a ball from Rashid to the keeper after scoring one run from five balls

In the 42 over of the match, Bangladesh lost two wickets in successive balls when the visitors roared back into the contest.

Debutant Jake Ball sent back Mosaddek Hossain for a first-ball duck when the ball was inside-edged on to the stumps.

Ball rocked Bangladesh when he dismissed Shakib Al Hasan and silenced the crowd at Mirpur. Shakib played a quick-fire knock and upped the ante when required.

Tigers allrounder made 79 from only 55 balls. He struck 10 fours and a massive six in his belligerent innings.

Bangladesh opener Imrul Kayes reached his century in the 37th over with his side at 218 for 4.

Imrul's second ODI ton was made in 105 balls, and he smashed 11 fours and two sixes along the way.

Adil Rashid placed England in the driving seat when he took his second wicket in the 27 over. He sent back Mushfiqur Rahim for 12.

Mushy slog-swept, timed his shot well, in fact too well as the ball went straight down the throat of the substitute fielder at mid-wicket.

The ground went silent as the Tigers found themselves in a spot of bother.

After a 50-run partnership for the second wicket between Imrul and Mahmudullah in 8.2 overs, England spinner Adil Rashid sent back Mahmudullah in the 23rd over with 132 runs on the board.

Mahmudullah smashed the ball from Rashid but found the only fielder at mid-wicket who took an easy catch. Bangladesh batsman was dismissed after he made 25 from 26 with two hits to the fence.

England tasted success in the 14th over when Jake Ball took the crucial wicket of Sabbir Rahman. Sabbir was going great guns, made 18 from 11 but was caught brilliantly at the boundary by David Willey.

Sabbir crunched a short ball towards deep midwicket, it seemed to be clearing the rope but Willey grasped it inside the boundary, but then knew he was going to go over the line so flicked the ball back inside, then leaped back into the playing area to take the catch.

Bangladesh lost their opener Tamim Iqbal in the tenth over of the chase with 46 runs on the board. Jake Ball got his maiden ODI wicket when Tamim swung across the line to a short-of-a-length ball and top-edged it to Vince at cover.

Tamim scored 17 from 31 balls with two fours to his name.

Chasing 310, Bangladesh openers Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes began quietly as England bowlers were on the money most of the time. Although the batters were offered some width, they played and missed several times to the frustration of the Tigers fans at Mirpur.

The new ball was coming nicely on to the bat under the lights, but Bangladesh openers could not break the shackle and score freely.

Earlier, the visitors scored 309 for 8 after 50 overs thanks to Ben Stokes' maiden ton and Jos Buttler's late cameo at Mirpur under the lights.

England lost their 8th wicket in the last over when Chris Woakes was run out for 16.

After giving his side some crucial runs late in the innings, Jos Buttler was dismissed in the 50th over and was the seventh wicket to fall for England. Buttler smashed 63 from only 38 balls, and sent the bowlers on a leather hunt.

Buttler's cameo contained three fours and four sixes.

England lost their sixth wicket, that of Moeen Ali in the 44 over. Mashrafe picked up his second scalp of the game when his bouncer was hooked by the English allrounder straight down the throat of Tamim Iqbal at fine-leg.

Ben Stokes, after reaching his maiden ODI ton was dismissed in the 42nd over to the relief of Bangladesh fans. Stokes smashed 101 from 100 balls, and entertained his teammates with eight fours and four massive sixes.

Mashrafe's slower ball did the trick! England still have a good launching-pad to finish strongly.

Bangladesh managed to stop the Stokes-Duckett stand at 153 when Shafiul returned in the 39 th over and sent back the England debutant for a well-made 60.

Duckett could not get going and was playing too many dot balls for his liking. He tried to release some pressure with a big hit, but was clean bowled in the process. He faced 78 balls and struck six fours in his knock.

Stokes and Duckett kept up the pressure on Bangladesh and extended their partnership to 150 in 26 overs. They built a solid platform for the power-hitters to tee off in the death overs.

England found themselves in the driving seat with Stokes and Duckett batting positively at Mirpur. They reached their 100-run partnership inside 18 overs and looked to put their foot down on the gas in the last 20 overs of the innings.

England consolidated well after the fall of the third wicket with Ben Stokes and Ben Duckett batting prudently under pressure. Both the batters were happy to use their feet to the spinners, and managed to dispatch anything loose on offer.

The 50-run stand inside 10 overs for the fourth wicket settled things down for the visitors.

Bangladesh supporters at Mirpur raised the crescendo to another pitch when England lost their third wicket in the 13th over.

Jonny Bairstow was brilliantly run out by Sabbir Rahman for a three-ball duck. The batsman went for a tight run but could not beat Sabbir's arm.

England lost their second wicket in the 12th over when Shakib Al Hasan sent back Jason Roy for 41. The England opener faced 40 balls, struck five fours and a six in his knock.

Roy came down the wicket and was looking the clear straight boundary. He sliced his shot and Sabbir Rahman at long-off took the catch quite comfortably.

England wobble after a decent start…

Bangladesh broke the opening partnership which was threatening to take the game away when James Vince chipped his shot to Mashrafe at mid-on in the 8th over.

Vince contributed 16 to the 41-run opening stand, but played one shot too many and paid the ultimate price. He advanced down the pitch, didn't middle his shot and the ball went off the splice to mid-on where Tigers skipper didn't make any mistake.

England openers James Vince and Jason Roy gave their team a steady start with 29 runs on the board after five overs with sensible batting on a slowish pitch.

Both of them were selective in their shot-making and tried to put pressure on the fielders with quick singles now and then. Bangladesh bowlers offered width too often for their liking, but the English batters could not pierce the field regularly in the power-play overs.

England skipper Jos Buttler opted to bat first as the coin fell in his favour against Bangladesh led by Mashrafe Mortaza in the opening encounter of the 3-match ODI series at Mirpur stadium.

This series against England will be Bangladesh's quest for a seventh successive bilateral series win at home where they have been unbeaten for two years. Their latest triumph came against Afghanistan, which was Bangladesh's first ODI series of 2016.

Tigers are boosted by the return of Taskin Ahmed, who was earlier banned from bowling with a suspect action. Tamim Iqbal's latest hundred, the roaring return of left-arm spinner Mosharraf Hossain after eight years, inclusion of Al-Amin Hossain and Imrul Kayes making a statement in the tour game will hold them in good stead in conditions they are accustomed to.

Favourites or not, Bangladesh have momentum on their side, having beaten England in three of their last four ODIs.

Every series has its importance. But England's series in Bangladesh, which includes three ODIs and two Tests has got special significance in Bangladesh's cricketing existence in the aftermath of a terror attack on Dhaka's Holey Artisan Bakery on July 1 that claimed 22 lives and made headlines across the world.

The atrocity by fundamentalists understandably threw the series into uncertainty on security fears but it was thankfully revived after frantic activities from the Bangladesh government and more importantly after a bold and forward-looking stand by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

That is the reason Bangladesh ODI and T20I captain Mashrafe did not miss the opportunity to thank England at the pre-match press conference in Mirpur.

"First of all I would like to thank the England team and ECB obviously," the skipper said.

For Bangladesh there will be many things to prove in the three-match ODI and two-match Test series. So far, the organisers have left no stone unturned in ensuring maximum security for the visitors and a successful ending will be a huge message to the world.

Teams

Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Sabbir Rahman, Mushfiqur Rahim(Wicketkeeper), Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat, Mashrafe Mortaza(Captain), Mosharraf Hossain, Taskin Ahmed and Shafiul Islam

England: Jason Roy, James Vince, Ben Duckett, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler(Wicketkeeper, Captain), Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Jake Ball and Adil Rashid

Can the home crowd spur Bangladesh to Asia Cup glory on March 6, 2016? File photo: STAR