In Abu Dhabi, Bangladesh commenced their Asia Cup journey with a triumphant seven-wicket victory against Hong Kong on Thursday. Hong Kong managed to score only 143 runs for the loss of 7 wickets, while Bangladesh successfully chased down the target of 144 runs with 14 balls remaining. Captain Litton Das led the batting with a score of 59, and Towhid Hridoy contributed an unbeaten 35. Hong Kong, invited to bat first, struggled to maintain a fast scoring rate and suffered multiple wickets towards the end of their innings. Under the new leadership of Litton Das, Bangladesh’s bowling attack dominated the powerplay after choosing to field first.
Although spinner Mahedi Hasan bowled the opening over, it was the pace pair of Taskin Ahmed and Tanzim Hasan Sakib who posed the most threat to the Hong Kong top order. The new ball offered some swing and seam, which the fast bowlers exploited effectively. Taskin dismissed Anshuman Rath for 4 runs caught behind in his first over, and Tanzim bowled out Babar Hayat for 14 runs after he had just hit a straight six off him.
The final scores were: Hong Kong 143 for 7 in 20 overs (Nizakat Khan 30, Zeeshan Ali 30; Tanzim Hasan Sakib 2/21, Rishad Hossain 2/31, Taskin Ahmed 2/38) and Bangladesh 144 for 3 in 17.4 overs (Litton Das 59, Towhid Hridoy 35 not out; Ayush Shukla 1/32, Ateeq Iqbal 2/14).