Bangladesh sealed a commanding victory in the second T20 international against England in Mirpur, securing the series win with a four-wicket triumph. England made a decent start, reaching 50-1 after six overs. However, the game quickly slipped out of their grasp as a string of wickets tumbled on a challenging, turning pitch.
The tourists were eventually bowled out for a modest total of 117 in the 20th over, with Ben Duckett the top scorer with 28 from as many balls. However, four of his partners fell to Mehedi Hasan, who finished with figures of 4-12.
In response, Bangladesh made a steady start to their chase, with Najmul Hossain Shanto leading the way with an unbeaten 46 that secured victory with seven balls to spare. Jofra Archer took two wickets in the dying stages of the match, finishing with impressive figures of 3-13, but the hosts held their nerve to take 15 from the first five balls of the penultimate over bowled by Chris Jordan.
Playing in their first series in this format since their T20 World Cup triumph in November, England was without several key batters, including Ben Stokes, Alex Hales, and Will Jacks.
Following their defeat in the series opener on Thursday, captain Jos Buttler made further changes to the team’s line-up, dropping himself to number four and promoting Dawid Malan to open. He also handed a debut to 18-year-old prodigy Rehan Ahmed.
However, the team’s new strategy failed to pay off, as Malan was dismissed cheaply by Taskin Ahmed, while Buttler was bowled by Hasan Mahmud’s yorker for just four, reducing England to 57-4 after nine overs.
Duckett once again provided some resistance in the middle order, but he failed to convert his start into a substantial score, as he and Sam Curran added just 34 runs, struggling to find boundaries on a challenging pitch.
Mehedi claimed Curran as one of two stumping victims, leaving England looking a batter light with Chris Woakes coming in at number seven. The visitors lost three wickets in the final over, as Archer and debutant Ahmed suffered embarrassing runouts, capping off a disappointing performance.
The two teams will now meet for the final game at the same ground on Tuesday, with England looking to salvage some pride from the series.
Leon Osamor
