Batting first, Bangladesh could not handle the bounce in the wicket as Sajid Mahmood, Andrew Flintoff and James Anderson went about decimating the batting. Even when the spinner Monty Panesar came to bowl, Bangladesh could not handle the pressure and threw their wickets away. Only Saqibul Hasan with 57 (not out) could stand up to the England bowling. The English fielding wasn’t at its best but luck was on their side. Captain Michael Vaughan dropped Shahriar Nafees and as he threw the ball back to Paul Nixon, he was pleasantly surprised to find opposing Captain Habibul Bashar out of his ground. Lacklustre cricket from Bangladesh, but England wasn’t complaining. As the top five fell away for just 47, Bangladesh struggled to bring any respectability to their score.
Eventually, Paul Collingwood and Paul Nixon stuck it out to take England home. Michael Vaughan is also not sure about what he should do with the toss, he said. Of course, he hasn’t cracked the formula that his batsmen need to score more consistently. “I still don’t know what to do with the toss. The conditions were good and the atmosphere was electrifying with plenty of good support,” he admitted.
The victory does keep the English in the hunt for a semi-final berth, but it gets progressively difficult as they play South Africa next before their last match against the West Indies. England needs to win both to have any chance of making it through. But even winning both doesn’t guarantee them a spot. South Africa plays New Zealand and then England. Winning one of these two is all they need to make it through. Should New Zealand win against South Africa, the South Africa versus England match will be a playoff on April 17. An exciting prospect that.
On England missing Trescothick
"They are missing someone like Marcus Trescothick. He is the one who makes a big difference for them,"
Man of the Match - Sajid Mahmood
On his description about the Barbados pitch
"It is a little bit bowler friendly. It's got extra bounce and an extra bit of pace. I think I'm hitting pretty good areas. I just need to further it against West Indies and South Africa"
