South Africa vs Bangladesh 2017, 1st T20I: 5 talking points

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Sarkar came out all guns blazing

South Africa once again asserted its supremacy over Bangladesh, winning the first T20I by 20 runs in Bloemfontein. It was a superb performance by J. P. Duminy's men, who continued their winning form into the T20Is.

Let us look at some of the best moments from the match.


#5 Soumya Sarkar's belligerence

With a daunting target set before it, Bangladesh required a positive start.

Soumya Sarkar was severe on both the opening bowlers, scoring 47 off 31 balls, with five fours and two sixes. Unfortunately, he got out far too soon, robbing the innings of momentum. Nevertheless, it was an entertaining knock.

#4 Mehidy Hasan's economical bowling

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Mehidy Hasan bowled tight lines

While all the other bowlers were being carted around, the young spinner held his own against the likes of A. B. de Villiers and Quinton de Kock, bowling superb lines with terrific control.

He got Hashim Amla out early and picked up the crucial wicket of de Villiers, who was aiming for a big score. The confident 20-year-old finished with creditable figures of 4-0-31-2.

#3 South Africa's mini-collapse

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Bangladesh fought back strongly

After 10 overs, South Africa's score was 97/2 and they were primed for a 200+ tally. With de Kock getting to 50, things were starting to look ominous for Bangladesh.

However, Bangladesh fought back by taking de Kock and Duminy in quick succession. This helped the visitors restrict the South Africans to a sub-200 score, although this eventually proved to be enough to take them to victory.

#2 The Behardien show

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Behardien scored runs at a brisk pace

Just when it seemed like South Africa would meander to a par score, Farhaan Behardien stepped up the gas and scored vital runs during the death overs. He combined with David Miller and scored 62 in the last five overs. He scored 36 runs off just 17 balls, providing much-needed momentum, ably supported by David Miller, who scored 25 from 19 balls.

As Shakib later conceded, the last five overs certainly had an impact on the match's outcome.

#1 South Africa's dazzling start

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Quinton de Kock scored another fifty

When de Kock was joined at the crease by de Villiers, there sure would have been jitters in the Bangladesh camp.

What followed was an onslaught from the star batsmen. De Villiers was severe on anything short, and scored 49 off 27 balls with eight hits to the fence. De Kock was also devastating, and gave the bowlers a torrid time, scoring 59 off 44 balls.

This partnership set up the innings beautifully for the middle order players to capitalise on.

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