Opener Tamim Iqbal struck an unbeaten 83 to guide Bangladesh past a spirited Netherlands by eight runs in their first group encounter of the World Twenty20 in Dharamsala yesterday.
Put into bat, Bangladesh suffered from a lack of partnerships but Tamim, with his fourth T20 half-century, almost single-handedly lifted the score to 153 for seven.
It was a disappointing show of batting from a side which sparkled in the recently concluded Asia Cup, where the hosts ended runners-up after a keenly contested final against India.
Tamin though remained unaffected with the wicket-fall as the left-hander smacked six boundaries and three sixes during his 58-ball stay.
Netherlands medium-pacer Timm van der Gugten led the charge with three wickets as Paul van Meekeren and left-arm spinner Roelof van der Merve got three scalps between them.
The Dutch batsmen also put up a brave show to give Bangladesh a run for their money but ultimately experience prevailed and the minnows were restricted to 145 for seven in their 20 overs.
Opener Stephen Myburgh provided a solid start to the Orange brigade and skipper Peter Borren took it forward but left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan’s twin strike put a lid on Dutch hopes.
In the end, lower-order batsman Mudassar Bukhari provided a scare with his five-ball 14 but his runout spelt the end for Netherlands, who are making their third appearance in the tournament.
Mashrafe Morataza-led Bangladesh are favourites to top their group and move into the Super 10 stage of the 16-team event.
Brief scores
Bangladesh 153 for 7 (Tamim 83, van der Gugten 3-21) beat Netherlands 145 for 7 (Borren 29, Al-Amin 2-24, Shakib 2-28) by eight runs