Mitchell Marsh smashed an unbeaten 77 as Australia hammered New Zealand by eight wickets to clinch their maiden Twenty20 World Cup title on Sunday.    Chasing 173 for victory, Australia depended on a 92-run second-wicket stand between David Warner, who made 53, and Marsh to achieve their target with seven balls to spare in Dubai.    Warner became Trent Boult's second wicket but Marsh kept up the charge to power Australia home to their long-awaited T20 crown and add to their five 50-over World Cup trophies.    Glenn Maxwell, who made 28, joined Marsh, who hit six fours and four sixes in his 50-ball knock, to put on 66 runs and hit the winning boundary as the Aussies came charging in to celebrate the triumph.    Skipper Kane Williamson hit a valiant 85 in New Zealand's 172-4 after being invited to bat first in a crucial toss won by Aaron Finch as teams chasing have won all but one game at the venue.    Australia, whose previous best was a runners-up finish in 2010, came into this edition's semi-final with one loss to England and beat Pakistan in the final-four clash with a chase of 177.    Australia fast bowler Josh Hazlewood returned figures of 3-16 and leg-spinner Adam Zampa had 1-26.    Australia suffered an early blow in their chase when Finch departed for five off Boult as a largely neutral but not packed-to-capacity crowd roared.    But the left-right batting pair of Warner and Marsh combined to take apart the bowling with fours and sixes galore.    Marsh hit Adam Milne for one six and two fours on his first three balls of the knock to signal his ruthless intent.    Warner also kept up his punishing act as he hammered leg-spinner Ish Sodhi for 17 runs in one over with just a single to Marsh.    He smoked Jimmy Neesham for a six to raise his third half-century of the tournament but soon fell to Boult.    Warner, with 289 runs in total, ended second behind Pakistan's Babar Azam (303) in the tournament's batting chart.    Earlier Williamson, who was dropped on 21, started cautiously but once settled took on the opposition bowling to reach his first half-century of the tournament.    He finished with 10 fours and three sixes in his 48-ball blitz to lift New Zealand from 57-1 in 10.    The Kiwis initially struggled and lost Daryl Mitchell caught behind for 11 off Hazlewood.    Opening batsman Martin Guptill failed to get quick runs despite his three boundaries and a 48-run second-wicket stand with Williamson.    Williamson survived a spill by Hazlewood in the deep with the ball popping out of the fielder's hand to find the boundary. Pace spearhead Mitchell Starc was the bowler.    The captain hit back with two more fours off left-arm quick Starc who was taken for 60 runs from his four overs, to get some momentum into the innings.    Zampa sent Guptill trudging back to the dugout after the opener's 35-ball 28 but Williamson kept up the charge with two sixes off Maxwell.    Williamson again picked out Starc to smash four fours and one six in a 22-run 16th over and put on 68 with Glenn Phillips, who made 18.    Hazlewood returned in his final over to break the stand with Phillips' wicket and then got Williamson out with a leg-cutter. Source: BSS AH

Bangladesh clinched the five-match Twenty-20 International series against New Zealand, thanks to a sublime bowling effort of left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed and pacer Mustafizur Rahman, who scripted the side's six-wicket victory in the fourth game today (September 8) at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.   Both of the bowlers claimed four wickets, with Nasum's four for 10 being his career-best bowling. Mustafizur conceded just 12 runs in 3.3 overs for his four wickets.   The combined effort of the duo dismissed New Zealand for just 93 in 19.3 overs but the victory of Bangladesh was not as clinical as it was anticipated.   The hosts had to play till the last over to confirm the victory with captain Mahmudullah Riyad slog-sweeping offspinner Cole McConchie for boundary to bring the score 96-4 in 19.1 overs.   Mahmudullah was not out on 43 off 48 with one four and two sixes and saved the side from the blushes which was on the cards after Ajaz Patel left Bangladesh reeling to 32-3 in sixth overs.   A third series victory before the Twenty20 World Cup was on the line as Bangladesh began the chase.   Bangladesh won the first two matches by seven wickets and four runs before tasting a 52-run to New Zealand in the third game.   Offspinner Cole McConchie broke through with the wicket of Liton Das for 6 and then Patel came into action, baffling the batsmen with simple but accurate bowling.   The lack of patience of Bangladeshi batsmen helped him when both Shakib Al Hasan (8) and Mushfiqur Rahim (0) played rash shot to be out in consecutive deliveries.   New Zealand sensed a chance but Mahmudullah Riyad ruined that. He firstly shared a 35-run partnership with Naim Sheikh and brought the side back on track.    Naim's run-out dismissal for 29 runs again gave New Zealand a glimmer of hope. However Mahmudullah calmly drove the side to the victory.   For New Zealand, Will Young battled lonely to score 46 off 48, clobbering five fours and one six.   While Nasum sliced the top order of New Zealand, Mustafizur showed his magic in the death overs, denying the visitors go past 100 runs. This was the second time New Zealand being dismissed below 100, with their 60 in the first match remaining their joint lowest ever T20 International score.   After New Zealand opted to bat first, Nasum struck in the first over as Rachin Ravindra top-edged one to Saifuddin for duck. In his next over, he found extra bounce to get Finn Allen (12) who looked to be dangerous increasingly after reverse-swept Shakib Al Hasan for six.   But New Zealand found some hope when skipper Tom Latham and Will Young stabilized the innings, playing with caution that the pitch demanded.   After scoring 21, Latham was baffled by the sharp turn of offspinner Mahedi Hasan bowling and got dismissed. His dismissal ended a crucial 35-run partnership.   Nasum then came back to his second spell and demolished New Zealand completely with a double strike in consecutive deliveries, dismissing Henry Nicholls (1) and Colin de Grandhome for duck.   Will Young showed the maturity to carry the innings amid the wickets tumbling around him.   Mustafizur came up with his trademark cutter and slower to curb the aggression of the visitors. He firstly got the wicket of Tom Blundell (4) to start his venture and later cleaned up the tail with an intriguing show of death bowling.   His four wickets also included the prized scalp of Young who was dismissed in the last over.   Mohammad Saifuddin and Mahedi Hasan got the rest of the two wickets evenly. Source: BSS AH

Soumya Sarkar came up with scintillating allround performance as Bangladesh chased down a mammoth 194-run target with incredibly ease to snatch a five-wicket victory and thereby won the three-match T20 International series by 2-1 at Harare Sports Club today. By winning the last match of the tour, the Tigers completed a hattrick of series win against Zimbabwe. The visitors won the one-off Test and whitewashed Zimbabwe in three-match ODI series before sealing 2-1 win in T20 series. The only defeat came in the second T20, which gave Zimbabwe a chance to win the series. But the hosts’ aspiration was not fulfilled despite compiling a hefty 193-5 as Bangladesh gunned down the total with four balls to spare. Soumya Sarkar led the charge with 2-19 in bowling before hammering a terrific 49-ball 68. Bangladesh though lost opener Naim Sheikh (3) cheaply, Soumya stood tall against the adversities and kept the side in a position of dominance. Soumya Sarkar’s sublime 49-ball 68 included nine fours and one six. It was his second half-century in the series. While Soumya played the match defining knock, he was ably supported by Shakib Al Hasan and skipper Mahmudullah Riyad, who batted aggressively to keep the asking run rate always under control. Shakib struck two fours and one six in his 13-ball 25 while Mahmudullah hit 34 off 28 with two fours and one six before being out in the 19th over. Mahmudullah’s dismissal gave Bangladesh a shock but youngster Shamim Patwari, playing only his second match, sailed the side home with an unbeaten 31 off 15, cracking six boundaries. Afif Hossain was the other notable scorer with 14 off just 5, clobbering two sixes. Opener Wessley Madhevere gave Zimbabwe a flying start along with Tadiwanashe Marumani after captain Sikandar Raza decided to bat for the third time in a row in the series. They shared 63 runs in just six overs before Marumani fell for 27. But Madhevere sent the ball across the rope for six times to hit 54 off 35. While Madhevere gave the platform, Regis Chakabva whacked Bangladesh bowler sin style to clatter 48 off just 22 as he smote six towering sixes. Ryan Burl gave the finishing touch, making an unbeaten 31 off 15 with three fours and two sixes. While Soumya bagged 2-19, Shakib, Saifuddin and Shoriful took one wicket apiece for Bangladesh. Source: BSS AH

Gemcon Khulna lifted the title of Bangabandhu T20 Cup on Friday, beating Gazi Group Chattogram by 5 runs in the final at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. Khula batted first after losing the toss and posted 155 runs with Mahmudullah Riyad’s unbeaten 70. In reply, Chattogram made a cautious start. However, they lost two wickets – Soumya Sarkar (12), and Mohammad Mithun (7) – during the powerplay. Shuvagata Hom removed Soumya while Al Amin sent off Mithun. Khulna took control of the game in the first 10 overs, conceding only 63 runs and taking three wickets. Liton Das, the highest run-scorer for Chattogram, was caught short of the crease for 23 off 23 deliveries. Chattogram needed 94 runs in the last 10 overs. Riding on the 41-ball fifty of Shykat Ali, they inched towards victory but fell short of six runs in the last over bowled by Shahidul Islam. In the last 10 overs, Chattogram scored 87 runs. They needed 16 off the last six balls, but Shahidul conceded 10 only along with scalping the wickets of Shykat and Mosaddek Hossain in two successive deliveries. And Chattogram finished on 150 for six in 20 overs. Shahidul bagged two wickets while Al Amin, Shuvagata Hom and Hasan Mahmud took one wicket each for Khulna. Earlier, Khulna were sent to bat first after losing the toss. It made the match tough for them right away as Nahidul Islam removed Jahurul Islam off the first ball. They also lost Imrul Kayes for eight adding only 42 runs in six overs in the powerplay. Nahidul bagged two wickets conceding 19 runs in three overs. Next Chattogram captain Mohammad Mithun gave the ball to Mosaddek Hossain who removed Zakir Hasan for 25 off 20 balls. At the end of 10th over, Khulna were stuttering at 63 for three wickets. In the fourth wicket stand, Ariful Haque and Mahmudullah Riyad added 40 runs. Ariful, who was promoted up the batting order, managed 21 off 23 balls. Right after Ariful’s dismissal, Shuvagata Hom came in and posted 15 off 12 balls. He accompanied Mahmudullah in a 34-run stand in the fifth wicket partnership. They eventually posted a challenging total of 155 for seven in 20 overs. Mahmudullah Riyad hit an unbeaten 70 off 48 balls with eight fours and two sixes. For Chattogram, Nahidul and Shoriful bagged two wickets each while Mosaddek and Mustafizur took one wicket each. Source: UNB AH

Gemcon Khulna and Gazi Group Chattogram are all set to lock horns in the final of the Bangabandhu T20 Cup which will take place on Friday at 4:30pm at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.  These two teams ended the league-phase of the event with the highest points and run-rate. While Chattogram achieved 14 points from seven wins in eight games, Khulna gained eight points from four wins.  Chattogram lost Qualifier 1 against Khulna, but they made it to the final beating Beximco Dhaka in Qualifier 2.  Before taking the field in the final, both teams have revealed their desire to lift the trophy. Chattogram coach Mohammad Salahuddin said Khulna have some experienced players which will be a big advantage for them but he said he believes youngsters in his team have the ability to turn the tables. “We’ve a talented bunch of young players with some experienced guys. I believed they have the ability to deliver something expected in the final. Most of the players in our team didn’t play many finals in their lives. And at the same time, there will be no spectators in the gallery which is a relief for them because they are not used to much pressure,” he told the media Thursday during a practice session at Mirpur.  “It’s not important to think about what you’ve done in the last 10 games. It’ll not help us in the final. It (success in the final) depends on the performance we would show in the final and decisions we would take,” he added.  Chattogram was heavily reliant on Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mustafizur Rahman and Shoriful Islam. Liton led them with the bat scoring 370 runs in nine games. He is also the highest runs getter in the event so far. Soumya also did well, scoring 280 runs in 10 games with an average of 31.11.  Left-arm pacer Mustafizur bagged 21 wickets in nine games for them while Shoriful scalped 14.  Khulna banks on new blood Khulna captain Mahmudullah Riyad also expressed his ambition to win the title with the squad that has a good mixture of young and experienced players. “We’ve a good tournament so far. We played a good brand of cricket, especially, I'm fascinated with the performance of players who were members of the World Cup-winning Bangladesh team,” Mahmudullah told the media on Thursday.  Mahmudullah said the inclusion of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza has increased experience in their team.  “He played many finals and won four titles of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). So, it’s great to have him in the squad. I always talk to Mashrafe so that I can get ideas from him to do well in the field. We’re lucky that he’ll feature for us in the final,” he added.  Khulna, however, will miss the service of Shakib Al Hasan. The veteran allrounder left the team due to a family emergency.  “Shakib could play a vital role in the final. We all know what he can do in the field. Since he’s not available in the final, we should take the responsibilities to do well,” Khulna captain told the media.  Each member of the champion team will receive Tk 150,000 while each member of the runners-up team will get Tk 75,000. The best batsman and the best bowler of the event will receive Tk 200,000 each while the player of the tournament and man of the final will get Tk 300,000 and 100,000 respectively, and there will be special performance award for four players who each will receive Tk 100,000.  Source: UNB AH

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday confirmed that the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia 2020 has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ICC held a meeting on Monday to decide the fates of three major events in the coming years. In this meeting, the IBC Board (the commercial subsidiary of the ICC), windows for the next three ICC men’s events were also agreed to bring clarity to the calendar and give the sport the best possible opportunity over the next three years to recover from the disruption caused by the coronavirus.  Instead of 2020, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will take place in October-November 2021 with the final on November 14. The 2022 edition of the same event will take the place on October-November with the final on November 13.  The next ICC Men’s World Cup (50-over) will take the place on October-November 2023 with the final on November 26.  “We have undertaken a comprehensive and complex contingency planning exercise and through this process, our number one priority has been to protect the health and safety of everyone involved in the sport,” ICC Chief Executive Manu Sawhney said in a statement.  The IBC Board agreed to continue to monitor the rapidly changing situation and assess all the information available in order to make a considered decision on future hosts to ensure the sport is able to stage safe and successful global events in 2021 and 2022. “The decision to postpone the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup was taken after careful consideration of all of the options available to us and gives us the best possible opportunity of delivering two safe and successful T20 World Cups for fans around the world,” as ICC Chief Executive also added in the statement.  International cricket was held for a long time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The deadlock came to an end when England took on West Indies in a Test series at home recently. However, most of the cricket-playing nations are still waiting to get back to the field to resume cricketing activities. Source: UNB Read In Bangla Version AH

Hosts Bangladesh completed a clean sweep in the two-match T20 home series outplaying Zimbabwe by nine wickets on Wednesday. Tigers have maintained their all-win record against Zimbabwe beating the tourist by 48 runs in the first T20I after their convincing wins in the one off-Test and three-match ODI series. Bangladesh won the toss and sent Zimbabwe bat first in this game at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. But the tourists managed to score only 119 for seven in 20 overs. In reply, Bangladesh sealed the game in 15.5 overs with the help of the unbeaten 60 by Liton Das off 45 balls with eight fours. He was adjudged the man of the match. The hosts lost only one wicket when Mohammad Naim was caught by Tinashe Kamunhukamwe at the boundary for 33 off 34 balls with five fours. Soumya Sarkar came in at number three and remained unbeaten hitting 20 off 16 balls with two sixes. Zimbabwe had a good start with the bat, posting 69 for two wickets with Brendan Taylor smashing 59 off 48 hitting six fours and a six. But the other batsmen failed to keep the scoreboard rolling. Craig Ervine was the second-highest scorer with 29 off 33 balls. But batsmen like Sean Williams and Sikandar Raza failed to do well in the match. Mustafizur Rahman and Al Amin Hossain bagged two wickets each while Mohammad Saifuddin, Mahedi Hasan and Afif Hossain took one wicket each. Bangladesh’s next assignment is to tour Pakistan for one ODI and Test. However, this series is now under uncertainty due to the outbreak of coronavirus. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President Nazmul Hasan on Wednesday hinted that they might call off this tour. Source: UNB AH

Riding on the fiery batting efforts by Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar, the high-flying Tigers outplayed Zimbabwe by 48 runs in the first match of the two-match T20I series at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Monday. Sent into bat first after losing the toss, Bangladesh posted a comfortable 200 runs. In reply, Zimbabwe were bundled out for 152 runs in 19 overs to lose the match by 48 runs.  Zimbabwe were never in a position to offer a threat to the hosts as they lost veteran Brendan Taylor in the second over while replying to a big total of 200 runs. Shafiul Islam drew first blood removing Taylor for one from five deliveries. The tourists lost two more wickets before posting 50 runs on the board. Craig Ervine was the second to get dismissed. He fell prey to Mustafizur Rahman for eight off nine balls with one four while Wesley Madhevere sent to the dressing room trapping into a run-out. Sean Williams and Tinashe Kamunhukamwe added 32 runs in the fourth wicket stand when Zimbabwe stuttering at 37 for three wickets. Leg-spinner Aminul Islam Biplob earned the breakthrough removing Kamunhukamwe and Williams in successive two deliveries. Eventually, Zimbabwe tumbled for 152 all-out in 19 overs as the sealed the game by 48 runs. Tinashe Kamunhukamwe was the highest runs scoring 28 while Sean Williams (20), Richmond Mutumbami (20), Donald Tiripano (20) and Carl Mumba (25) also contributed with the bat. Msutafizur Rahman and Aminul Islam bagged three wickets each while Shafiul Islam, Mohammad Saifuddin and Afif Hossain took one wicket each. Earlier, Liton continued his tremendous form as he smashed a 39-ball 59 with five fours and three sixes to help Bangladesh post a challenging total of 200 for 3 in 20 overs. Liton hit two centuries in the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe and earned the man of the series award. Now, he managed to bring his golden form in T20Is as well. Along with him, Soumya Sarkar struck 32-ball 62 with four fours and five sixes to help the Tigers post a big total. Zimbabwe won the toss and sent Bangladesh to bat first. Liton Das and Tamim Iqbal posted 92 runs in the first wicket stand before Tamim fell prey to Wesley Madhevere for 41 off 33 balls with three fours and two sixes. After Tamim’s departure, Liton and Soumya Sarkar added only 14 runs in the second wicket stand. Liton was removed by Sikandar Raza. The right-handed batsman expected the ball to turn away but it didn’t and hit his pad. In the third wicket stand, Soumya and Mushfiqur Rahim added 40 runs. In the eight-ball short stay, Mushfiqur scored 17 with two sixes but he failed to continue as Chris Mpofu trapped him. After Mushfiqur’s removal, Mahmudullah and Soumya added 54 runs on the board off 25 balls. Soumya remained unbeaten on 62 scoring 20 runs in the last over smashing three big sixes. Raza, Mpofu and Wesley Madhevery scalped one wicket each in this game. The second and final game of the series will take place on March 11 at the same venue. Source: UNB AH

Bangladesh lost the first game of the three-match T20 International series against Pakistan by five wickets at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Friday. Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat first but failed to put up a challenging target. Mahmudullah-led Tigers scored only 141 runs for five in 20 overs. In reply, Pakistan chased the target in 19.3 overs with five wickets in hand. The hosts ended on 142 for five. Pakistan lost captain Babar Azam in the very first over to right-arm pacer Shafiul Islam. Babar went to drive the ball to the cover area but missed it. The ball nicked the bat before going to the hand of wicketkeeper Liton Das. Bangladesh scalped another wicket inside the powerplay when Mustafizur Rahman dismissed Mohammad Hafeez for 17 off 16 deliveries. Hafeez had made a 35-run partnership in the second wicket with the debutant Ahsan Ali. Tigers needed to take some more wickets in the middle overs but they failed to inflict any damage. Pakistan lost their third wicket with 81 runs on the board. Iftekhar Ahmed and Imad Wasim went back to the dressing room in quick succession but the comeback man Shoaib Malik was firm on the wicket. He remained unbeaten for 58 off 45 with five fours. The veteran all-rounder left the field ensuring a flying start to the series for the hosts. While Malik was the highest runs scorer for Pakistan, debutant Ahsan was the second-highest runs getter for them hitting 36 off 32 with four fours. Shafiul took two wickets and Al Amin Hossain one conceding 28 and 18 runs respectively. Mustafizur and leg spinner Aminul Islam picked up one wicket each. Earlier, despite managing a 50-plus opening stand by Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Naim, Bangladesh failed to pass 150 runs. The first wicket fell in the last ball of the 11th over at 71 runs. Tamim scored 39 off 34 balls with four fours and one six before being dismissed by run-out. He played 16 dot balls. The other opener, Naim, scored 43 off 41 playing 18 dot balls. Bangladesh needed to bat till 15 overs to pass the 100-run mark. In the last five overs, they managed to score only 41 runs. After the dismissal of the openers, the onus was on Liton Das and Mahmudullah Riyad to play some big shots and put up a big total on the board. Liton fell for 12 off 13. He was also a victim of run-out, while Mahmudullah remained unbeaten for 19 off 14 balls. Afif Hossain and Soumya Sarkar also failed to impress. While Afif fell for nine off 10 balls, Soumya scored seven of five balls. Shaheen Afridi, debutant Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan bagged one wicket each. The second game of the series will take place on January 25 at the same venue at 3pm Bangladesh time. The third and final match of the T20 series will be played on January 27 at the same venue. Source: UNB AH 

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has announced squad for three-match T-twenty series against Pakistan. As the new face Hasan Mahmud has been included in the squad. The pacer caught the eye in the recently concluded Bangabandhu BPL while playing for Dhaka Platoon. Mahmudullah Riyad will captain the team. Nazmul Hossain Shanto has got his chance in the squad following his superb performance in this year’s BPL. After playing the lone T-twenty match in 2018 against Sri Lanka Mehedi Hasan has been included in the team again. He has shown very good performance for Dhaka in the Bangabandhu BPL as a spinning allrounder. Bangladesh and Pakistan will take part in the three-match T-twenty series scheduled to be held on January 24, 25, and 27 in Gaddafi Stadium of Lahore. Bangladesh squad: Mahmudullah Riyad (Captain), Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Afif Hossain, Nayeem Sheikh, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Mohammad Mithun, Mehedi Hasan, Aminul Islam Biplob, Mustafizur Rahman, Shafiul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Al Amin and Hasan Mahmud. AH