Bangladesh U19s crash out of World Cup semifinal race after loss to England

Bangladesh’s hopes of reaching the semifinals of the ongoing ICC Under-19 World Cup ended after a seven-wicket defeat to England in their opening Super Six Group 2 match at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Monday.

In a must-win encounter, the Junior Tigers produced an underwhelming batting display after opting to bat first, getting bowled out for just 136 in 38.1 overs.

Defending a modest total, Bangladesh made a promising start with the ball as pacer Al Fahad struck twice early, removing England openers Joseph Moores (1) and Ben Dawkins (27) to reduce them to 39 for 2 in the ninth over. However, a crucial 78-run partnership between captain Thomas Rew and Ben Mayers steadied the chase and took the game away from Bangladesh.

Mayers scored 34 before being dismissed by Samiun Basir, but Rew remained unbeaten on 59 off 50 deliveries as England reached 137 for 3 in 24.1 overs. The win lifted England to the top of the points table with six points, while India sit second with four points and two matches in hand.

Bangladesh, who carried just one point from the group stage, are now mathematically out of semifinal contention. Even a win in their final Super Six match against Zimbabwe on January 31 in Harare would only take them to three points.

Earlier, Bangladesh’s innings never gained real momentum. Opener Zawad Abrar fell for six off just the third ball of the innings. A 46-run stand between Rifat Beg (31) and skipper Azizul Hakim Tamim (20) offered brief resistance, but their dismissals triggered a collapse as the Tigers lost their last eight wickets for just 65 runs.

Md Abdullah was the second-highest scorer with 25. For England, Sebastian Morgan claimed three wickets, while Ralphie Albert and Manny Lumsden picked up two each.

Bangladesh, champions of the 2020 edition, finished eighth and sixth in the subsequent tournaments in 2022 and 2024 respectively.