Delhi T20I: Bangladesh restrict India to 148/6

Bangladesh bowlers made full use of a slow Feroz Shah Kotla pitch to restrict India to 148/6 in the first T20I of the three-match series, in New Delhi.

Afif Hosain (1/11 in 3 overs) was the pick of the Bangladeshi bowlers. Shafiul Islam and Aminul Islam chipped in with two wickets apiece.

Shikhar Dhawan top scored for the Indians with a 42-ball 41. Shreyas Iyer (22) and Rishabh Pant (27) got starts but got out trying to up the scoring rate. Important cameos from Krunal Pandya (15 off 8 balls) and Washington Sundar (14 off 5 balls) towards the end of the innings allowed India to come close to the 150-run mark.

Earlier, amid smog concerns in the national capital, Bangladesh captain Mahmudullah won the toss and elected to field. His decision was vindicated in the first over itself, as Shafiul Islam got one to jag back into Rohit Sharma (9), who was looking in good touch with two exquisite boundaries in his 99th T20I. Though Sharma reviewed the LBW decision, umpire's decision prevailed.

Dhawan and K.L. Rahul (15) tried to rebuild the innings with a 26-run partnership but the latter soon mistimed a shot straight into the hands of Mahmudullah off Aminul Islam. Next man, Shreyas Iyer, brought some much-needed momentum into the Indian innings with a 13-ball 22, with Dhawan clearly struggling to get his shots away on the slow pitch.

The latter's struggle ended when he was run out, responding to Rishabh Pant's call for a second run. Debutant Shivam Dube, too, fell to Hossain's brilliance as he plucked a one-handed return catch. Pant, too, departed soon after, getting caught on the long-on boundary.

In the end, it was left to Sundar and Pandya to guide India to a respectable total.