The series-deciding clash at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka, saw Bangladeshi openers make a solid start.

Tanzid Hasan Tamim’s maiden ODI century, a run-a-ball 107, steered Bangladesh to a total of 290 for the loss of 5 wickets. Litton Das and Towhid Hridoy anchored the team’s innings in the middle order, although the duo of batters struggled to maintain the tempo in the death overs. 

Salman Agha’s 106-run knock, unfortunately, was overshadowed in a losing cause for Pakistan in a high-pressure run chase.

Bangladesh now remains in the hunt to secure a direct qualification into the ODI World Cup 2027 after moving up in the ICC men’s ODI rankings.

Tanzid Hasan Tamim’s Maiden International Century

Since debut of Tanzid Hasan in white-ball cricket in 2023, this was indeed his first-ever international ton across ODIs and T20Is.

His 107-run knock off 107 balls (including 6 fours and 7 sixes) converted Bangladesh’s start into a high total.

Tanzid’s 105-run opening partnership with Saif Hassan (36 runs) and another 53-run stand with Najmul Hossain Shanto (27 runs) for the 3rd wicket proved his hunger to score big runs against Pakistan’s formidable bowling attack.

Bangladeshis Intentions Clear While Batting First

After losing the toss, Bangladesh exhibited their intent to accumulate runs in the power play by smashing maximum boundaries.

Pakistan’s early exhaustion of a review turned out to be an added advantage for the hosts. As soon as the fielding restrictions were lifted, Bangladesh accelerated their innings in the 11th and 12th overs, scoring 11 and 15 runs, respectively.

Litton and Towhid Kept Bangladesh Scoreboard Ticking

The middle-order batters Litton Das and Towhid Hridoy, despite their struggles to maintain the well-set tempo, managed to stitch a 68-run stand by running hard between the wickets. 

Following Tanzim Hasan Tamim’s dismissal in the 37th over, Bangladesh at 194/3 were in a comfortable position to set a massive target above 300 or 350.

The visiting bowlers Haris Rauf (3/52 in 10 overs), Shaheen Afridi (1/55 in 10 overs), and Abrar Ahmed (1/49 in 10 overs) controlled the flow of runs.

Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s side struggled to maintain their momentum against spinners as batters rarely managed to clear the boundary ropes. Mainly, the excessive wear of the ball offered spinners the much-needed grip to restrict Bangladesh below 300+ total, which seemed realistic at one stage.

Litton’s 41 runs off 51 balls (including 1 four and 1 six) and Hridoy’s 48 runs off 44 balls (including 4 fours) steered Bangladesh to set a 291-run target against Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Wrong Start To A Tricky Run Chase

Having lost three wickets in the first three overs of the power play, Pakistan’s struggle against the opponent’s pace bowling attack was clearly evident.

The early dismissal of Sahibzada Farhan (6 runs) was a big blow to the men in green. Furthermore, Maaz Sadaqat (6 runs) and Mohammad Rizwan (4 runs) left Pakistan struggling at 17/3 in 3 overs.

Ghazi Ghori (29 runs) and Abdul Samad (34 runs) shared a 50-run partnership to revive their team’s innings. But the duo’s half-century run stand couldn’t sustain longer and came to an end after Ghori’s dismissal in the 14th over.

Salman Agha’s 3rd ODI Ton in Vain

Despite Pakistan’s poor start to the run chase, Salman Agha’s 106-run knock off 98 balls (including 9 fours and 4 sixes) kept his team’s hopes alive of clinching the series.

The situation worsened when Pakistan lost half of its batting line-up at 82/5 in 17.4 overs. This was one such crunch moment when Agha played a crucial role and stitched a 79-run stand with Saan Masood (38 runs) and another 52-run partnership with Shaheen Afridi (37 runs).

Agha’s dismissal in the 48th over turned the fortunes in Bangladesh’s favor to script a sensational series win.

Bangladeshi Bowlers: The Unsung Heroes

While the batting line-up received praises, the Bangladeshi bowlers were the real game-changers against Pakistan while defending a target below 300.

Taskin Ahmed (4/49 in 10 overs) spearheaded the pace bowling attack alongside Mustafizur Rahman (3/54 in 10 overs) and Nahid Rana (2/62 in 10 overs).

Rishad Hossain (1/56 in 7 overs) was the only wicket-taker in Bangladesh’s spin bowling department, having dismissed the Pakistani skipper Shaheen Afridi in the last over.

Bangladesh Standings in ICC Men’s ODI Rankings After 2-1 Win vs Pakistan

With this win, Bangladesh surged to the ninth position in the ICC men’s ODI rankings, surpassing the West Indies.

Ahead of the 3-match ODI series against Pakistan, the difference between Bangladesh and the West Indies was small, with one rating point that differentiated their rankings.

However, a 2-1 win has now pushed Mehidy Hasan’s team to ninth place with 79 rating points, while West Indies have been demoted to the 10th spot with 77 points.

Pakistan, on the other hand, still retains its fourth position even after losing the series, but its rating points have taken a slight dip from 105 to 102.

Overall, this improvement in rankings has been extremely important for Bangladesh to ensure a top-eight finish in the rankings by March 31, 2027, to ensure direct qualification to the forthcoming ODI World Cup.

The post Tanzid Hasan Maiden ODI Ton Steered Bangladesh to Thrilling Series Win vs Pakistan appeared first on Crickex.

The bilateral series already commenced on March 11, 2026 (Wednesday), where the Tigers triumphed over the visitors by 8 wickets at Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka.

For Pakistan, this 3-match ODI series scheduled till March 15 (Sunday) is just a preparatory phase to rebuild a strong squad. However, Bangladesh embarks on a tough journey to improve its position in the ODI rankings before the cut-off date.

ICC ODI Rankings: Bangladesh’s Struggle to Secure Automatic Qualification

The following rankings, up to the 11th place, show how Bangladesh is trapped in a tight battle to earn a straightforward qualification:

As of March 31 2027, the teams that rank in the first eight positions of the ICC ODI rankings will directly qualify for the Men’s World Cup 2027.

Full member nations like South Africa and Zimbabwe, being the tournament hosts, will earn automatic qualification along with the other top eight teams.

Bangladesh, currently ranked at the 10th spot, is now under pressure to attain a top-eight finish by the specified date.

What If Bangladesh Fails to Get an Automatic Qualification?

A failure in direct qualification would leave Bangladesh to take part in a global qualifying event, as the qualifiers would determine the best teams to secure the four additional spots for the main event.

Considering the host nation’s participation, Bangladesh’s position becomes unstable. This is because Zimbabwe, as co-hosts, will qualify even if they don’t finish in the top eight.

This means Bangladesh needs to stay active in the race for straightforward entry into the World Cup by securing either the eighth or at least the ninth place.

Bangladesh’s Chances to Directly Qualify for the 2027 World Cup

As Bangladesh returns to ODI cricket after a long gap of four months, winning every series in the forthcoming days becomes extremely important.

The biggest reason why the team slipped in their rankings was due to the recent struggles in the 50-over format, having lost 4 out of 5 ODI series.

According to Bangladesh’s Future Tour Programs (FTP) planned for the 2023-27 cycle, there are 20 ODIs scheduled ahead of the cut-off date in March 2027. All these matches are now a must-win situation for the Tigers to avoid the risk of playing the global qualifiers:

Importance of Bangladesh To Secure Direct Qualification

Assuming Bangladesh plays the qualifiers in Zimbabwe and South Africa, the tricky pitch conditions could pose tough challenges. Also, the associate nations that are keen to advance into the main event can disappoint Bangladesh with an unexpected victory.

Mainly, the contest in the qualifiers becomes tighter, where a team cannot afford to lose even a single game.

3 Weaknesses Bangladesh Should Improve To Guarantee Direct Qualification

Here are those 3 big drawbacks Bangladesh should overcome to triumph in their forthcoming series and directly seal a spot in the World Cup 2027:

• While the top-order batters have been impressive,Bangladesh lacked strength in the middle order. This has been the main reason why the team failed to convert their promising starts into a high-scoring total.
  
• Most often, Bangladesh’s inability to grab wickets in the middle overs has been clearly evident. This allowed the opponent team to anchor the innings and accelerate the flow of runs.
  
• Players like Litton Das and Afif Hossain can help solve Bangladesh’s struggles to add depth to the batting line-up. This becomes crucial to counterattack the opponent team’s spin bowling attack, particularly against Pakistan in the ongoing series at home.

What If Pakistan Loses the Ongoing ODI Series vs Bangladesh?

Pakistan will not face any threats to the World Cup 2027 qualification even if they lose the ongoing series to Bangladesh. This is because the men-in-green, currently ranked at fourth in the ICC ODI rankings with 4,294 points and 105 ratings, are now in a safe zone to automatically qualify for the marquee event.

As Pakistan is undergoing a transition phase, this series still holds great value to revamp the squad and experiment with the playing XI following consecutive disappointing campaigns in ICC tournaments.

However, a series loss would drop Bangladesh’s ODI rankings further, forcing them to risk securing a place in the main tournament via global qualifiers, competing against non-full member nations.

Overall, Bangladesh has opened up a fresh chapter after missing out on the T20 World Cup 2026, and they will be keen to improve their ODI rankings and overcome their flaws to ensure a direct qualification into the ODI World Cup 2027.

The post Why Bangladesh vs Pakistan 3-Match ODI Series Could Decide World Cup 2027 Qualification? appeared first on Crickex.

The match between the arch-rivals, scheduled on February 15, 2026, in Colombo, promises to be an ice-breaker between the BCB and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

At one stage, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) withdrawal threats posed concerns to the tournament’s commercial success. However, it is reported that the BCB boss, Animul, played a pivotal role in convincing Pakistan to reverse its boycott decision against India.

A Tripartite Meeting in Lahore: Ice-Breaker on The Way

Animul Islam revealed the global governing body’s decision during the tripartite meeting between the representatives of ICC, BCB, and PCB.

However, Bangladesh hasn’t been penalized for forfeiting the T20 World Cup 2026. Rather, an agreement was made for the nation to host an ICC tournament between 2028 and 2031.

With representatives of five Asian countries expected to attend the high-profile clash, BCB found this an opportunity to break the ice with BCCI. Here is what Animul said:

“Yeah! This was the decision taken by the ICC. For the India-Pakistan match on February 15th, the representatives of all five Asian countries are required to be present on the field. We need to watch the game together and interact with one another. 

You can consider it something similar to it (referring to the icebreaker between BCB and BCCI),�/em> Animul said.