Even before Bangladesh could gather their thoughts and recover from a narrow loss to hosts India in Bangalore, they traveled to the Eden Gardens in Kolkata where table-toppers New Zealand awaited earnestly.
Skipper Mashrafe Mortaza had repeatedly mentioned about the cliffhanger and why rebounding quickly would help them immensely. With three losses from as many matches, there was one last opportunity to register a victory.
However, the Kiwis entered into the contest as a completely confident unit with everyone performing their roles to perfection. Kane Williamson’s side were the first one to qualify for the semi-finals on the back of three successive wins.
Williamson called correctly and had no hesitation to bat first on a sluggish surface with the thought of bringing his spinners into play during the second half. The Blackcaps weathered difficult batting conditions to post 145 which ultimately proved to be way beyond the faltering Bangladeshi batsmen.
There were several unforgettable moments throughout the match that don’t fade away, quite like the Axe Signature line of body perfumes. Here are 5 moments which will remain in the fans' memories for a long time:
#1 – Williamson leads from the front
There is a nice little competition brewing between four of the most dynamic young batsmen in the world at the moment. Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Joe Root and Kane Williamson have all endeared themselves to cricket aficionados with their insatiable appetite for runs.
While Williamson may have marshaled his troops brilliantly, he could not quite assert his dominance with the bat in this World T20. But, he came into his own against the Bangladeshis by adjusting his game to the situation.
In the absence of his opening partner Martin Guptill, the 25-year old began with a couple of crisply timed shots against Mortaza. When spin was introduced to tie him down, Williamson responded by using his feet to finding the boundaries consistently.
Shakib Al Hasan’s experience was off-set by the right-hander’s dexterity who ensured that New Zealand made good use of the Power Play and laid the foundation for the other batsmen to follow.
#2 – Mustafizur Rahman stamps his authority
When Mustafizur Rahman burst on to the scene with a series of memorable performances against India and South Africa in 2015, a lot of people attributed his instant success to the novelty factor.
However, the 20-year-old has grown in stature since then by maintaining his accuracy and developing fresh variations. He showed all that as he confounded the New Zealand batsmen with his trademark cutters.
Mustafizur started impressively by troubling Henry Nicholls and exposing his incorrect trigger movement. The left-arm seamer continued his stranglehold by deceiving Williamson and castling the stumps once again.
He came back in the end overs to prise out Grant Elliott and also managed to breach the defense of Mitchell Santner. The lanky bowler capped off his admirable showing by securing a well deserved maiden five-wicket haul in T20Is.
#3 – Tight New Zealand pick up early wickets
Bangladesh’s chase got off to a horrid start as Tamim Iqbal was caught short of his crease with a direct hit from Colin Munro. As expected, the Kiwis were electric in the field and saved quite a lot of runs in the Power Play.
Mitchell McClenaghan picked up another wicket with a clever change of pace as the pressure began to mount on the batsmen. Grant Elliot, too, did a useful job by keeping things quiet from the other end.
Williamson proceeded to bring back Mitchell Santner, who had been simply stunning in the tournament. The left-arm spinner made an impact with his impeccable control as he dismissed Shakib to leave the Tigers reeling at 31/3.
On a pitch which became progressively difficult for the batsmen, the Blackcaps did not take their foot off the pedal as they kept chipping away. The match was slowly slipping away from Bangladesh who needed something special.
#4 – Bangladesh caught in a tangle
The New Zealand bowlers were on top while the Bangladesh batsmen had no clue on how to negotiate the vicious pitch. With the required run-rate shooting up, things did not look too promising for the Tigers.
Things were about to get even worse for Mortaza’s men. After looking relatively settled, Sabbir Rahman tried to launch Nathan McCullum over the mid-wicket fence and was done in by the sharp turn.
Ish Sodhi joined in on the fun as his extra bounce outclassed Soumya Sarkar and Luke Ronchi completed a smart stumping. Mushfiqur Rahim walked into the middle and clearly appeared to be uncomfortable. Elliot ended his misery with a sneaky leg-cutter to all but blow away any hopes that Bangladesh had from the encounter.
#5 – Clinical Blackcaps continue unbeaten run
After the short interruption, play resumed which meant that there was no escape for Bangladesh. Immediately, Sodhi brought a googly out of his hat to outfox Mahmudullah as the procession persisted.
Elliot found himself scalping 3 wickets with his deceptive medium-pace as the lower-order simply folded. In a fitting end to the game, Al-Amin Hossain left a googly to bring the curtains down on Bangladesh.
Astonishingly, as many as ten batsmen were bowled and New Zealand had routed the Tigers for 70. Kane Williamson was adjudged the Player of the Match for his gritty innings on an abrasive surface.
The 75-run victory placed the Kiwis in a jubilant frame of mind as the knockout stages beckoned. Meanwhile, Bangladesh were left helpless as a dismal campaign finally came to an end.
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