Bangladesh enhance chances of featuring in 2017 CT

Mirpur , June 19: Bangladesh have enhanced their chances of securing a Champions Trophy berth after their brilliant win over India in the first One-Day Intertiol (ODI) of the three-match series that took them to seventh spot in the Intertiol Cricket Council (ICC) rankings.

Mustafizur Rahman’s five-wicket haul on debut helped Bangladesh outplay the two-time world champions by 79 runs at the Sher-e-Bangla tiol here on Thursday. The hosts scored an impressive 307 after electing to bat before their bowlers bundled out India for 228 to take a 1-0 lead in the series in style, reports bdnews24.com.

The win took Mashrafe Bin Mortaza’s side past West Indies in the ODI team rankings. Both Bangladesh and West Indies had 88 points before the match. While the Caribbean side remain with the same number of points, Bangladesh have jumped to 91.

The top eight ODI teams will take part in the 2017 Champions Trophy that will be held from June 1 to 19 in England and Wales. Bangladesh will qualify for the competition if they retain their place in the top eight until September 30 this year.

As a result, the qualification battle is mainly between Bangladesh, the West Indies and Pakistan in the bottom half of the table. IANS