So, that's it from our coverage of the first ODI in Chelmsford. Join us back on Friday for the second ODI between Ireland and Bangladesh at the same venue. Stick around to our network for all the other cricketing actions across the globe. For now, this is AyanChatterjee signing off on behalf of my co-commentators Deepak Prakash, and MeghMandaliya alongside scorer/analyst Dushyant Madhukar Kumar. Stay safe, happy, and cool. Goodnight and CHEERS!
11:35 PM IST: So, rain has had the final say in the proceedings as the first match has been abandoned due to rain. That means Ireland has to go to the Qualifiers while South Africa automatically qualifies for the ICC World Cup 2023.
Let's recap as to what happened in the game till the rain intervened. It was Ireland skipper Andrew Balbirnie who won the toss and elected to field first. Bangladesh lost both their openers early as Litton Das went for a golden duck while skipper Tamim Iqbal scored 14. There were plenty of starts from the Bangladesh batters. Najmul Hossain Shanto scored 44 off 66 balls. Shakib Al Hasan scored 20 off 21 balls before playing a rash shot. Towhid Hridoy scored 27 off 31 balls. Mushfiqur Rahim held the innings together for his 61 off 70 balls. Mehidy Hasan Miraz chipped in with 27 off 34 balls. Taijul Islam scored 14. Shoriful Islam chipped in with a cameo off 16 off 15 balls as Bangladesh ended with 246/9 in 50 overs with the help of 18 extras given by the fielding side. It was a competitive score by the visitors.
Joshua Little was the pick of the bowlers for Ireland as he finished with figures of 3/61 in 10 overs. Mark Adair and Graham Hume bowled well as they picked up a couple of wickets apiece and gave nothing away. Adair had figures of 2/44 in 10 overs. Hume had figures of 2/32 in 10 overs. A wicket apiece for George Dockrell and Curtis Campher as well. Andy McBrine went wicketless.
Chasing a stiff 246 for the win, Ireland lost Paul Stirling for 15 off 10 balls. Skipper Andrew Balbirnie fell cheaply for 5 runs. Doheny struggled for his 17 off 39 balls. Harry Tector was looking good with his 21* off 37 balls. Keeper batter Lorcan Tucker was with him on 2* off 4 balls when the heavens opened up after 16.3 overs. 5 extras were given by the fielding side.
A wicket apiece for Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, and Taijul Islam as only 4 bowlers were used by Bangladesh before the rain set in for the day. It came and never relented to have the final say in the game.
So, match abandoned due to rain in the end.
11:33 PM IST: The inevitable has happened. The match has been abandoned due to rain and that means South Africa qualify for the 2023 World Cup directly while Ireland will have to go and play the Qualifiers.
10:28 PM IST | The scenes are not promising as it's still raining at the moment, and the sky has grown darker. We will start losing overs from 10:33 PM IST (6:03 PM Local). The cut-off time is around 12:50 AM IST (8:20 PM Local).
9:58 PM IST | There are no updates to report as the rain continues to fall, with the covers firmly in place. The outlook for further play appears increasingly grim.
9:17 PM IST | It seems the rain has gotten a bit heavier as the groundsmen are bringing in more covers.
9:04 PM IST | The rain has started to fall here at County Ground, Chelmsford. The players and umpires are walking off the field now. In order to determine a result using the DLS method, it is imperative that we have at least 20 overs of play.
16.3 E Hossain to H Tector
0 131 kph. Short of a length delivery and on the top of leg stump, Tector ducks underneath that as the ball passes to the keeper.