DHAKA, 21 January 2005 — A three-wicket burst by pace bowler Douglas Hondo helped secure Zimbabwe a 22-run victory over Bangladesh in the first One-Day International yesterday.
Chasing a victory target of 252, Bangladesh made a good start and were on course for victory at 128 for three before Hondo blasted out the middle order.
Bangladesh opener Rajin Saleh made a useful 40 until he was caught by Stuart Matsikenyeri off the bowling of Chritopher Mpofu while captain Habibul Bashar (39) and Mohammad Ashraful (42) kept Bangladesh ticking along at the required run rate before both fell to Prosper Utseya.
However Hondo removed batsman Aftab Ahmed for one and followed up with the wickets of Alok Kapali and Khaled Mashud as Bangladesh slumped to 143 for six.
Khaled Mahmud offered further resistance in a useful partnership of 42 with Tapash Baisya, but his side’s chances disappeared when he was run out for 34 off 30 balls.
Earlier Brendan Taylor and Hamilton Masakadza helped Zimbabwe overcome an early wobble to rack up a decent 251 for eight after skipper Tatenda Taibu won the toss and chose to bat. The tourists made a shaky start, quickly losing the wickets of Barney Rogers and Dion Ebrahim to stand at 14 for 2.
But Masakadza and then Taylor steadied the innings with contributions of 54 and 58 respectively and, with strong support from the tailenders, set Bangladesh a challenging target.
Bangladesh, who have won only six of the 101 one-day internationals they have played, won the Test series between the two countries 1-0 earlier this week.
