Published: 09:16 AM, 24 April 2026 Last Update: 09:19 AM, 24 April 2026
Shanto smashes century against New Zealand in ODI series decider
Shanto hit 105 from 119 deliveries and shared a critical 160-run partnership with wicketkeeper Litton Das. -BCB
NajmulHossainShanto scored his fourth ODI century to rescue Bangladesh from an early collapse, guiding the hosts to 265 for eight against New Zealand in the series-deciding third match on Thursday.
Shanto hit 105 from 119 deliveries and shared a critical 160-run partnership with wicketkeeper Litton Das, who scored 76, after the home side stumbled to 32 for three inside the first nine overs.
Fast bowler Will O'Rourke caused the initial damage for New Zealand. O'Rourke dismissed openers Saif Hassan and TanzidHasan for zero and one, respectively, before removing SoumyaSarkar for 18, finishing his seven-over spell with figures of three for 32.
Following the sharp opening burst, Shanto and Das absorbed the pressure and initiated a controlled recovery.
The pair relied heavily on strike rotation and gap placement during their 178-ball stand rather than regular boundaries. Left-arm spinner Jayden Lennox eventually broke the partnership by dismissing Litton Das in the 39th over, and later claimed Shanto to finish with two for 50.
In the lower-middle order, TowhidHridoy provided late acceleration, remaining unbeaten on 33 from 29 balls. Captain MehidyHasanMiraz added a brisk 22 from 18 deliveries before falling to off-spinner Dean Foxcroft.
The New Zealand bowling attack maintained discipline during the death overs, restricting Bangladesh to 34 runs in the final five overs while taking three late wickets.
Fast bowler Ben Lister secured two of those dismissals in the 49th over, removing Shoriful Islam and Tanvir Islam in quick succession, finishing with two for 62.
Earlier, Bangladesh suffered a top-order collapse, falling to 71 for three in the first 18 overs against New Zealand in the deciding third ODI in Chattogram.
New Zealand won the toss and elected to field first. The three-match series is currently tied at 1-1, with the visitors winning the opener and Bangladesh securing a six-wicket victory in the second match in Dhaka.
Fast bowler Will O'Rourke dominated the opening powerplay, claiming all three wickets to dismantle the host nation's top order.
He struck on his second delivery of the match, finding the outside edge of opener Saif Hassan for a scoreless duck, with wicketkeeper Tom Latham completing the catch.
O'Rourke then dismissed TanzidHasan for one run. Hasan attempted to fend away a back-of-a-length delivery but dragged an inside edge onto his own stumps.
SoumyaSarkar, who provided early resistance with 18 runs from 26 deliveries, suffered a similar fate in the ninth over. Attempting a late cut against O'Rourke, Sarkar chopped the ball onto his stumps to leave Bangladesh in deep trouble at 32 for three.
The hosts made two changes to their lineup, bringing in pacer MustafizurRahman and left-arm spinner Tanvir Islam in place of Taskin Ahmed and RishadHossain.
New Zealand made one change, recalling Ben Lister in place of Blair Tickner. Line Ups:
Bangladesh: Saif Hassan, TanzidHasanTamim, SoumyaSarkar, NajmulHossainShanto, TowhidHridoy, Liton Das(w), MehidyHasanMiraz(c), Tanvir Islam, Shoriful Islam, MustafizurRahman, NahidRana New Zealand: Henry Nicholls, Nick Kelly, Will Young, Tom Latham(w/c).
Muhammad Abbas, Dean Foxcroft, Josh Clarkson, Nathan Smith, Jayden Lennox, William O'Rourke, Ben Lister.
