Bangladesh secured a memorable 86-run Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) victory over Australia in the opening match of their three-match ODI series in Dhaka, marking their first one-day international win against the Australians in 21 years.
After being sent in to bat at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Tuesday, Bangladesh posted a competitive 284-8 from their 50 overs.
In reply, Australia struggled throughout their chase and were 191-9 after 42.2 overs when rain and lightning forced play to be abandoned, handing Bangladesh victory under the DLS method.
Fast bowler Nahid Rana was the star of the match, claiming 4-41 with a fiery spell that regularly exceeded 150km/h. The young paceman, mentored by former Australian speedster Shaun Tait, ripped through Australia’s batting line-up.
Australia’s innings got off to a disastrous start when Matt Short was bowled by Taskin Ahmed with the very first ball of the chase. Marnus Labuschagne’s poor run of form continued as he was trapped lbw for just one run, while stand-in captain Josh Inglis managed only 19 before falling to Nahid.
Cameron Green remained unbeaten on 52, registering his fourth ODI half-century, while Alex Carey scored 47 and Cooper Connolly added 35. However, none of the Australian batters could build a match-winning partnership.
“We didn’t get it right in all facets of the game,” Inglis admitted after the loss. “We dropped several catches and failed to build partnerships with the bat. It was a disappointing performance all round.”
Bangladesh were boosted by an unbeaten career-best 86 from Mossadek Hossain, who made Australia pay for a series of missed chances in the field. Australia dropped multiple catches and missed several run-out opportunities, allowing Bangladesh to post a challenging total.
Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto contributed 67, while Tanzid Hasan added 54 in a crucial 96-run partnership for the second wicket.
Nathan Ellis was Australia’s best bowler with figures of 3-38, while Matt Renshaw chipped in with 2-35. Debutant Liam Scott also claimed his maiden international wicket.
The defeat leaves Australia trailing 1-0 in the three-match series, with the second ODI set to be played in Dhaka on Thursday.