Shahzad double wrecks Bangladesh

Tamim Iqbal

Bangladesh v England, World Cup 2011, Group B, Chittagong

Kayes and Shakib build on Tamim fireworks

Shahzad double wrecks Bangladesh

Tamim Iqbal
© Getty Images

Tamim Iqbal launched Bangladesh's bid for World Cup survival with a brutal onslaught of 38 from 26 balls, before England hit back with three timely wickets to give themselves hope of defending a meagre total of 225 at Chittagong. By the halfway mark of the run-chase, however, Bangladesh were still very much in control of the contest at 123 for 3, with Graeme Swann's inability to grip the ball in dewy conditions undermining England's hopes of tightening the pressure in the middle overs.

After a stuttering finish to their effort with the bat, England carried on misfiring with their initial efforts with the new ball, as the dangerman Tamim was gifted a succession of leg-stump deliveries to kick-start the run-chase and get a partisan crowd right behind his team's efforts. Four of his five boundaries came from the errant James Anderson, and at 52 for 0 in the ninth over, Bangladesh were cruising into the ascendancy.

However, Tim Bresnan has stepped up to become the leader of England's attack in recent weeks, and in his second over he found an aggressive full length with a hint of late movement, and a flat-footed Tamim inside-edged onto his own stumps to stun the crowd back into silence. Four overs later, Anderson atoned for his wayward bowling with a pinpoint shy from backward square to run out Junaid Siddique at the non-striker's end.

Though England had considered playing three spinners in the lead-up to the match, they were very happy to have stuck to what they know when Swann's problems with the slippery white ball started to take hold. Andrew Strauss turned to Ravi Bopara for some fill-in overs of medium pace, while Stuart Broad's replacement, Ajmal Shahzad, produced a mixed bag of deliveries - a regular stream of leg-side wides was offset by the ball of the day to Raqibul Hasan, a perfect legcutter that straightened from a good length to hit the top of off.

With Imrul Kayes dropping anchor to excellent effect, Bangladesh's captain Shakib Al Hasan emerged to provide critical support in a fourth-wicket stand of 50. Shakib made a half-century in Bangladesh's last World Cup fixture against England in 2007, and at the end of a torrid off-the-field week, he found that the middle of the pitch was the safest place to be.

A sumptuous drive off Anderson confirmed his eye was in, although England regained a small measure of control when the umpires agreed to a ball-change after 21 overs, and Swann was instantly in the thick of things with a tidy fourth over that went for two runs. However, the more notable aspect of the over was Swann's petulance when called for a leg-side wide that might have brushed Shakib's pad. Aside from the extra run, it was a sign that England were getting very seriously rattled.

49.4 overs England 225 (Trott 67, Morgan 63, Naeem 2-29) v Bangladesh