Bangladesh stun Sri Lanka in fracas-filled nailbiter to set up India final

A nerveless Mahmudullah has heaved the penultimate ball of the game for a spectacular six to propel Bangladesh to the final of the NIDAHAS Trophy, stunning Sri Lanka by two wickets in a humdinger.

The Tigers will take on India in the T20I tri-series final on Sunday, after chasing down the hosts’ 159 for 7 at the R Premadasa Stadium on Friday.

The vice-captain held on his nerves for a matchwinning unbeaten 43 off 18 balls in the emotion-charged virtual semifinal that twisted and turned wildly.

Sri Lanka got the upper hand before Bangladesh had a steady start to theie chase. Akila Dananjaya got rid of Liton Das for 0, and then had Sabbir Rahman stumped for 13.

Opener Tamim Iqbal and in-form Mushfiqur Rahim played smart cricket and focused on singles to ease off the pressure.

Tamim showed aggression against the spinners and added 50 runs off 40 deliveries for the third wicket.

Mushfiqur crossed 1,000 T20I runs with a single in his 28-run  knock but hit straight to Kusal Perera at extra cover off Amila Aponso, trying to accelerate the run rate.

Spinners struck to bring Sri Lanka back in the game, picking five wickets for 51 runs to see Bangladesh slip from 97 for 2 to 109 for 5.

Tamim fell soon, but only after scoring his fifth T20I fifty.

Mahmudullah was joined by Soumya Sarkar but the left-hander did not last long: he charged down the wicket and edged Jeevan Mendis to the keeper for 10 as the required run-rate kept soaring.

Skipper Shakib Al Hasan, back from injury for this crunch game to lift the spirits of the team, flattered to deceive. He flicked a Isuru Udana delivery down the leg straight to fine leg off to leave his side needing 23 off 12.

But Man-of-the-Match Mahmudullah kept Bangladesh’s hopes alive and his head, as well, picking the occasional boundaries and running hard for singles to make sure the asking rate does not spiral beyond the reach.

With 12 needed off 7, Mehedi Hasan Miraj was run out from a direct hit after he failed to connect to a bouncer. The next ball, Mustafizur Rahman, in desperation to get Mahmudullah on strike, got himself run out.

Bangladesh were unhappy that Udana's second straight bouncer was not called a no-ball.

The square-leg umpire apparently stretched his arm to signal a no-ball, but eventually it was deemed a legal delivery once Mustafizur was out.

High drama followed as Shakib stormed out near the boundary rope and called his players off the field, which, if they had obliged, would mean Bangladesh forfeiting the match and getting disqualified.

But better sense prevailed and the team decided to carry on with the game.

There were to be more fracas  later on with Bangladesh's substitutes and Sri Lanka's fielders having a run-in.

After three dot balls and two run-outs, Mahmudullah was back on strike with 8 needed off 3 balls.

He hit one-handed a full and wide one from Udana over extra cover for a much-needed boundary and took two more off a low full toss in the following delivery.

The bastman then nonchalantly launched a slow and full one over deep square leg into the stands to spark off wild celebrations by the teammates and leave the hosts shell-shocked.

Earlier, counterattacking cameos by Kusal Perera and Thisara Perera lifted Sri Lanka to 159 for 7 after they were tottering at 41 for 5 in the 9th over.

The Pereras added 97 runs for the sixth wicket with Kusal (61 off 40) reaching his 10th and Thisara stroking his maiden T20I fifty on way to 58 off 37.

Bangladesh had opted to bowl first after calling the coin right.

Shakib bowled a couple of tight overs forcing Danushka Gunathilaka to try a big hit and hole out to long off.

Mustafizur took out Kusal Mendis (11) and Dasun Shanaka for a first-ball duck to heap more pressure on the hosts.

Mehedi Hasan had a big hand in getting two other wickets, getting Upul Tharanga run out and having Jeevan Mendis caught.

But with the game apparently slipping out of Sri Lanka's hands, the two Pereras intervened to give their side a fighting chance.

In the end, though, it was Mahmudullah who stole the show to hand his team a memorable win.