West Indies Batting 325 for 6 (Jangoo 104*, Carty 95, Rishad 2-69). Bangladesh 321 for 5 (Mahmudullah 84*, Mehidy 77, Soumya 73, Jaker 62*, Joseph 2-43) by four wickets
Brandan King picked up where he left off in the second ODI as he hit two fours and a six off Nasum Ahmed in the second over of the innings. His innings was abandoned in the same over after a mix-up with his opening partner Alick Athanaze over a non-existent run. Athanaze himself didn’t last long and was defeated in an attempted sweep in Nasum’s next over.
Carty remained steady at the other end and had already hit two fours. Afif dropped him on 22 before Carty pounced on the Bangladesh spinners in the middle overs. He hit Rishad Hossain for consecutive fours in the 18th over before hitting Mehidy Hasan Miraz for a six and a four in the 21st over. Jangoo hit Nasum three fours in a short space of time before throwing up Afif for his first six.
It was in the 34th when Bangladesh perhaps really upset the game. Jangoo had made a mistake against Rishad, only to see substitute fielder Parvez Hossain Emon miss the chance while running back from the middle. Rishad dismissed Carty on the next ball while Soumya took a flat catch at point. He also made a stunning one-handed catch to dismiss Roston Chase, but Jangoo’s miss came back to haunt her.
Immediately after Chase’s departure, Jangoo Mehidy hit his second six before Motie and Jangoo Mahmud hit a six each in the 43rd over. Taskin’s ensuing overbowl saw them score four each before the pair ended the chase.
The day could have belonged to Bangladesh considering how they fought. After a disastrous start in which they lost Tanzid Hasan and Litton Das in the third over and were down to 9 for 2, Soumya and Mehidy rebounded the innings with a 136-run third wicket partnership. Alzarri Joseph drove Tanzid forward with a rebound, with the left-hander firing a pull shot off the top. Litton’s horror streak in the ODIs continued as he gave King a wide lead at first slip.
Mehidy was positive from the start and hit five boundaries in the power play. Soumya, who was put at zero, opened up after the power play. He played the upper cut off Romario Shepherd for a six before overtaking Chase and Motie for a six each in successive overs.
Soon after Soumya was dropped for the second time by Jangoo after 45, Mehidy hit debutant Jediah Blades for four for six. Soumya added a four to score 16 runs from the over before hitting two more fours in his next attack. Soumya was at full speed when he hit Motie for his fourth six but fell on the next ball as the left-arm spinner caught him in front. Soumya scored 73 runs per ball, including six fours and four sixes.
Six overs after Soumya’s dismissal, Rutherford’s precise throw from point found Mehidy, who failed at the striker’s end and fell on 77 off 73 balls. Rutherford then had Afif Hossain caught at the midwicket boundary for 15 as Bangladesh again lost two wickets in quick succession.
But the last 20 overs belonged to Jaker and Mahmudullah. The pair had already added 96 runs in the first ODI but things went far better this time. After Jaker hit his first two fours, Mahmudullah dropped Motie with his first six before hitting Chase with his second over long off.
Jaker joined in the six-hitting when he hit Shepherd over cover, followed by Mahmudullah dragging Rutherford outside off for a six over square-leg. Bangladesh scored 59 runs in the last four overs, a strong total. Ultimately it wasn’t enough.
Mohammad Isam is ESPNcricinfo’s Bangladesh correspondent. @isam84
