B'desh beat Dutch to keep QF hopes alive
Chittagong: Bangladesh kept their hopes of reaching the quarterfinals alive by notching up a comfortable six-wicket triumph over the Netherlands in a Group B match of the cricket World Cup here on Monday.
Dominance of the spinners and a stack of run-outs ensured Bangladesh their first easy ride in the event as they easily chased a paltry target of 161 set by the Netherlands.
After the Peter Borren-led Dutch were bowled out in 46.2 overs, Bangladesh cruised to the target in 41.2 overs with man-of-the-match Imrul Kayes top-scoring with 73 and Shahriar Nafees hammering 37 off 60 balls.
The left-handed duo of Junaed Siddiqui and Imrul added 92 for the second wicket before Junaed, on 35, holed out to Pieter Seelaar off the bowling of paceman Borren in the 21st over.
Imrul continued his decent form with the second half-century in consecutive matches, hitting six boundaries in his 113-ball knock.
He was accompanied by Shahriar Nafees, who made 37, as Bangladesh picked up their third win in the competition. The two batsmen added 59 for the third wicket before Nafees was cleaned up by Tom Cooper's off-break.
Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan then came in, but fell to a splendid catch by Ryan ten Doeschate for one off seven balls.
For Netherlands, Cooper took two wickets while Mudasser Bukhari and Borren picked up one each.
The win means England will have to win their last group game against West Indies in Chennai on March 17 to stay in the competition and force Bangladesh to win their last game against South Africa on March 19.
If England lose, Bangladesh will have a clear path to the quarterfinals stage.
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