Mirpur: Sachin Tendulkar today created history by becoming the first batsman in the history of the game to score 100 international centuries but Bangladesh spoilt his party by posting an upset five-wicket win over India to throw open the Asia Cup tournament here.
Embellished with Tendulkar’s milestone knock of 114 runs, his 49th ODI century, India scored 289 for five but the hosts pulled off a stunning win with four balls to spare to send thousands of their fans into a frenzy at the Sher-e-Bangla national stadium.
The heroes of Bangladeshi win were opener Tamim Iqbal (70) Jahurul Islam (53) and Shakib Al Hasan (49) as they batted with sheer grit to pull the rug from under India’s feet.
Bangaldesh skipper Mushfikur Rahim hit a fiery 46 off 25 balls and Nasir Hossain supported him well with 54-run knock to record a shock win, their first against India since 2003 World Cup. The hosts needed 37 off the last four overs but the match tilted in Bangaldesh’s favour when Irfan Pathan leaked 17 runs in the 48th over. Skipper Rahim hit two consecutive sixes in that over and then treated Praveen Kumar with the same disdain to script a historic win. For India, apart from Tendulkar’s knock, Virat Kohli (66) and Suresh Raina (51) were the notable contributors for India.
India will now have to win their last league match against arch rivals Pakistan to entertain hopes of making it to the final.
It had been a long and agonising wait for Tendulkar to get to this century as pressure was piling on him to achieve the landmark ever since the disappointing England tour last year.
Exactly one year and four days since he scored his 99th hundred against South Africa during a World Cup match in Nagpur, Tendulkar neatly tapped a delivery from Shakib Al Hasan behind square leg in the 44th over to complete his landmark century. (PTI)
