Young Tigers win ODI series 3-2 against South Africa

Bangladesh U-19 clinched a humdinger of a match against South Africa U-19 by three wickets to win the Youth ODI series 3-2 at Rajshahi on Monday. Much like the series, this was another closely contested affair that could have gone either way but in the end, the young Tigers held their nerve to win the match and the series.

The hero of the final match was the team's vice-captain, Ariful Islam who starred with the bat to guide the home side to victory. He scored 68 from 76 deliveries to help his side capitalise on a good start and edge closer to victory.

There were a few hiccups near the end of the chase, but in the end, the hosts reached the target of 211 set by South Africa with 17 balls to spare. Earlier in the first innings, Bangladesh won the toss again, for the fifth time in a row this series and chose to field first on a green surface.

It was the David Teeger show with the bat for the Proteas once again as he top scored with 63 from 89 deliveries. But the right-handed batter did not find enough support from the other players as the openers Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Thebe Gazide were both dismissed for single figures by the Rizan Hossain.

Jonathan van Zyl was also out on single digits (seven runs) as the top order struggled against the Bangladesh bowlers. Eventually, some useful runs did come from the bat of captain Juan James (32 from 50 balls) and Richard Seletswane (27 from 47 balls).

For Bangladesh, Mahfuzur Rabby was the pick of the bowlers with his left-arm off-spin as he took three wickets for 43 runs. Fast bowler Rohnat Doullah Borshon was also impressive with two wickets.

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