KINGSTON: Bangladesh kept its hope of securing a place in Super 8 alive by defeating Netherlands by 25 runs in the group match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 at the Arnos Vale Ground on Thursday.

Bangladesh won critical two points in Group D, strengthening their position in second place on the rankings. Veteran Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Ak Hasan, young leg-spinner Rishad Hossain and pacer Mustafizur Rahman collaborated on Thursday to keep the team alive in the tournament.

The Netherlands were in it for a while but Bangladesh proved too strong in the end. The match was in the balance at the stage when Netherlands needed 56 off 36 with 7 wickets in hand, but things fell apart for them with the wicket of Sybrand Engelbrecht (33) who was looking good in the middle.

For Bangladesh, Hossain remained composed even after getting a few hits and picked up three crucial wickets, including the big one of Engelbrecht. Mustafizur Rahman was simply sensational with the ball as he conceded just 12 runs in his entire spell, bagging one wicket.

Chasing a target of 160, the Netherlands struggled to use the Powerplay and lost both openers with little on the board. Vikramjit and Sybrand Engelbrecht worked together to keep the ship stable, but the former was dismissed just when he was becoming hazardous. Following this, skipper Scott Edwards took charge and supported Sybrand Engelbrecht. The Netherlands got them into a good position, but then lost two wickets in the same over, putting them behind again. Skipper's wicket was the final nail in the coffin for the Netherlands as they could not recover from the batting collapse.

Earlier, Shakib Al Hasan's brilliant unbeaten 64* from 46 balls enabled Bangladesh to reach a respectable score of 159/5, with contributions from Tanzid Hasan (35), Mahmudullah (25) and Jaker Ali (14), after the Dutch opted to field first.

Score: Bangladesh 159-5 (20 overs), Netherlands 134-8 (20)