Shakib guides Tigers to series win

Shakib Al Hasan played a match-winning knock of unbeaten 96 runs as Bangladesh clinched the three-match series 2-0 with a three-wicket victory against Zimbabwe in the second one-day international in Harare yesterday.

The 34-year-old all-rounder, who was going through a lean patch with the bat since his reintroduction into international cricket following a one-year suspension by the ICC, came into his own and scored the winning boundary as Bangladesh chased down the 241-run target with five balls to spare.

Shakib's 109-ball innings featured eight boundaries as he mixed caution with aggression while losing partners at regular intervals. All-rounder Mohammad Saifuddin, batting at No 9, gave Shakib good company with an unbeaten 28 off 34 deliveries, the second highest score of the innings.

Earlier, Shakib contributed with the ball too, taking two wickets for 42 runs as Bangladesh restricted Zimbabwe to 240 for nine after being asked to field first.

The best performer for Bangladesh with the ball, though, was young pacer Shoriful Islam, the left-armer taking career-best figures of four for 46 in his 10 overs.

Bangladesh had won the first match of the series by 155 runs on Friday, courtesy of a Liton Das's century and Shakib's five-wicket haul.

The series concludes on Tuesday at the same venue.