All-round Shadab, five-star Hasan give Pakistan 1-0 lead

Beat Tigers by 37 runs in 1st T20I

FE Team | Published: May 29, 2025 23:58:51

Pakistan's Shadab Khan (right) celebrates after taking the wicket of Bangladesh's Luttion Das during the first T20 match in Lahore, Pakistan on Wednseday night- AP

LAHORE, Pakistan, May 28 (AP): Fast bowler Hasan Ali grabbed a 5-30, Shadab Khan produced a strong all-round performance and led a new-look Pakistan T20 cricket team to a thumping 37-run win over Bangladesh in the opening game of their three-match series on Wednesday.
Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha made a career-best 56 as Pakistan posted a competitive 201-7 after Agha won the toss and elected to bat in Mike Hesson's first assignment as Pakistan's new white-ball head coach.
Hasan, playing only his second Twenty20 international in more than 2-1/2 years, dismissed both openers with the new ball and claimed three more wickets in the death overs to bowl out Bangladesh for 164 in 19.2 overs.
Pakistan dropped seasoned batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in a bid to look for youngsters, who could bat aggressively - especially in the power play.
The selectors also overlooked fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi for the home series despite the left-arm fast bowler leading Lahore Qalandars to their third Pakistan Super League title in four years last Sunday.
In the absence of Afridi, Hasan provided Pakistan early breakthroughs despite Tanzid Hasan smashing three sixes and two fours in his brisk 31-run knock off 17 balls. Parvez Hossain Emon, who scored a century against United Arab Emirates in a T20 last week, could score only four as he mistimed a pull shot against Hasan and was caught on the edge of the circle.
Tanzid's aggression was also cut short by Hasan's knuckle ball as the left-hander got deceived by slowness of the delivery and was clean bowled in the fourth over.
Skipper Litton Das (48) and Towhid Hridoy (17) combined in a 63-run stand off 48 balls but the asking rate always kept creeping as Shadab Khan bowled a tidy four-over spell of 2-26.
Das was smartly caught at point by Fakhar Zaman as he tried to square cut Shadab in the 12th over and Hridoy was out plumb leg before wicket when he tried to play across the line against left-arm spinner Khushdil Shah in the next over.