Bangladesh whitewash world champion England in T20 series
Mirpur, Mar 14: Bangladesh whitewashed world champion England in their Twenty20 series by winning the third game by 16 runs on Tuesday.
Opener Liton Das hit a career-best 73 and Najmul Hossain Shanto 47 not out for Bangladesh to put up 158-2 on a slow Mirpur pitch.
Dawid Malan and skipper Jos Buttler had England on track to avoid being swept until their dismissals in consecutive deliveries. England slumped to 142-6.
Bangladesh earned its first T20 sweep of major opposition, while England was swept for only the third time after Australia in 2014 and South Africa in 2016.
"We talked about showing character ahead of the series and that's what we showed," Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan said.
"We were put into a tough position but won the game. That's the thing that will give us the confidence as we are build a team for the 2024 T20 World Cup."
Left-arm spinner Tanvir Islam, on debut, struck with his third ball when he removed opener Phil Salt for a duck.
Then Malan hit a 47-ball 53 with six fours and two sixes and put on a 95-run stand with Buttler, who appeared to be in supreme touch with 40 off 31, including four fours and a six.
But Malan edged behind to give pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman his 100th T20 wicket, and Mehidy Hasan ran out Buttler with a direct hit from point.
England collapsed from there, trying to maintain the asking run rate.
"Our fielding was top notch. Those two wickets in two balls changed the game completely," Shakib said.
England coach Mathew Mott agreed.
"The turning point was the run out, it was an amazing piece of fielding," Mott said. "You'd back yourself with Jos set at the back end there, got his eye in, and was ready to go. It really turned the game.
"We lost two wickets in the over. I thought we had enough of a platform that, if one of those two batted through, we would have given it a big shake at the back end."
Fast bowler Taskin Ahmed took 2-26 to receive man of the match and, when England needed an unlikely 27 off the last over, Hasan Mahmud conceded just two boundaries.
England also bowled superbly at the death, giving up only 27 runs in five overs to Bangladesh, and only one four.
But Bangladesh capitalized on dropped catches to build a competitive total.
Opener Liton Das, who made just 26 runs in the last five matches against England, returned to form with a 57-ball 73 studded with 10 fours and one six.
Liton brought up his ninth fifty off 41 balls, then was dropped on 51 by Ben Duckett.
Rony Talukdar was dropped by Rehan Ahmed off Jofra Archer but the damage was limited.
Liton and Talukdar shared 55 in the opening stand before Talukdar gave legspinner Adil Rashid a return catch, and Liton and Najmul Hossain Shanto combined for 84 for the second wicket.
Liton was finally fooled by a slower ball from Chris Jordan which carried to Salt.
Shanto saw the innings out with an unbeaten 47 off 36.
"We were really proud of our one-day (series) win (2-1). That was a massive effort," Mott said. "To finish the way we did today will leave a bit of a sour taste in our mouths but it also should act as an eye-opener for us on where we need to improve."
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India & Israel elevate ties to special strategic partnership, vow to soon conclude free trade deal
Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.
Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.
India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.
In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.
"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.
"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.
PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.
In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.
"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.
"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.
The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.
The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.
"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.
"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.
India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).
