Ravindra Jadeja rolled back the years with a 4-for on ODI comeback, while skipper Rohit Sharma remained unbeaten on 83 to guide India to a seven-wicket victory over Bangladesh at the 2018 Asia Cup in Dubai on Friday.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah finished with three wickets each as Bangladesh were bundled out for 173, which India achieved with 13.4 overs of play still remaining.
One of the three replacements in the squad, Jadeja was playing his first match in 15 months and was called to bowl in the 10th over after the pair of Kumar and Bumrah had sent both the openers back and Bangladesh reeling at 31/2.
The team expected him to keep the pressure going. But while the first fetched a single, the next was a no ball. Another ball called dead. The next two were smashed for fours as Shakib Al Hasan looked to ruin Jadeja’s comeback. But in the next ball he was gone and soon from being rusty, Jadeja was celebrating a wicket.
He would celebrate three more to complete a four-wicket haul on ODI comeback. The last time he had taken three or more wickets was in 2014 against the West Indies in New Delhi. His last three matches, all of which came in different parts of the world went wicketless. But here was Jadeja again making the batsmen dance to his tune.
Mohammad Mithun was the next to depart, trapped LBW by Jadeja. Mushfiqur Rahim (21) soon followed after attempting a reverse sweep straight into Yuzi Chahal’s hands. Bangladesh were stuttering at 65/5.
Also Read: India beat Pakistan 2 to enter Asian Team Snooker championship final
Mahmudullah (25) and Mosaddek Hossain (12) shared a 37-run stand. But Bhuvneshwar came back to trap the former before Jadeja completed his fourth. And from there it only looked a matter of time before Bangladesh were bowled out.
The inevitable disappeared into the night as Bangladesh found a new hero in Mehidy Hasan, who together with skipper Mashrafe Mortaza (26) added 66 for the eighth wicket, taking Bangladesh beyond 150. Mehidy scored 42 that had two fours and two sixes. All this while Mortaza had played the second fiddle and look to explode in the 47th over smashing Kumar for two consecutive sixes. His time, however, came to an end in the very next ball as he in a bid to raise the scoring rate played a left scoop straight to Bumrah.
In reply, India were off to quick start as the opening pair of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan scored through boundaries. Dhawan was more aggressive of the two and 40 off 47 balls before getting out to Shakib’s slower ball. The first wicket yielded 61, the second another 45, when Ambati Rayudu, who looked settled, offered a thin edge off Rubel Hossain’s bowling which was declared out after a successful review.
Dhoni (33) and Rohit then steered India home, the former getting out with just four runs to get. Dinesh Karthik then completed the formalities as India romped off to a third consecutive victory
Also read: Asia Cup 2018: Shoaib Malik the hero as Pakistan beat Afghanistan in last over thriller