Shahriar Nafees scored a cautious unbeaten 82 to guide the Bangladesh national side to a two-wicket victory over the Bangladesh A team in a practice match at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Friday.
The national squad suffered a scare after losing six wickets for 103 runs, chasing a modest target of 202 while Shahriar was protecting the other end batting at number three.
Shahriar added 53 runs for the seventh wicket with his uncapped team-mate Shubhagata Hom to stem the rot.
Things might have gone the other way had the A team left-arm spinner Saqlain Sajib not dropped Shubhagata on 28 off his own ball.
The national side, however, once again fell under pressure as they lost two more wickets with 33 more runs needed for a win but Shahriar kept his cool to steer his team home with the help of Mashrafee bin Murtaza.
Earlier in the morning, A team captain Mohammad Ashraful won the toss and chose to bat.
The openers proved their skipper’s decision was right as they put on 55 runs for the first wicket but the junior side failed to finish well as they were bundled out for 201 runs despite of a blistering 47 by the captain.
The national team’s left-arm spinning duo Abdur Razzak and Sohrawardi Shuvo took three wickets each while Mashrafee also bowled in a match after almost a three-month gap due to a knee injury.
‘Still I am not fully fit as I was out of practice and could not do my gym works last month for some personal problems. I don’t know whether I will be able to give my best in the upcoming series,’ said the express bowler after bowling eight overs in the match.
Mashrafee postponed his knee operation because of the Australian series. He did not get any wicket and conceded 36 runs in the eight overs he bowled.
Courtesy of New Age
