‘Afghanistan always have mysterious spinners in their squad’ : Shanto reflects on Ghazanfar's spellbinding performance

Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar became a name of mystery for Bangladesh, a fact admitted by Najmul Hossain Shanto himself.

However, the Bangladesh captain did not restrict his admiration to the 18-year-old off-spinner alone, instead praising the entire Afghan spin attack. In his words, "Afghanistan always have mysterious spinners in their squad."

Chasing 236 set by Afghanistan in Dubai on Wednesday, Bangladesh made a steady start, reaching 120 for 2.

But what followed was a sudden collapse. After Shanto's dismissal by Nabi, the 'Ghazanfari Show' began, ending Bangladesh's innings swiftly.

From 120 for 2, Bangladesh was bowled out for just 143. The side, already struggling with prolonged batting failures, lost their last seven wickets for just 23 runs.

Ghazanfar took five of those last seven wickets, beginning with Tanzid Hasan Tamim. The young spinner, playing only his sixth ODI, bowled 6.3 overs, conceding 26 runs for 6 wickets, and earned the Man of the Match title.

In the post-match presentation, when asked about Ghazanfar's bowling mystery after their heavy 92-run defeat, Shanto said, "Afghanistan always have mysterious spinners. They all bowled exceptionally well today, especially Ghazanfar, who was truly outstanding."

With Bangladesh at 120 for 2 and Shanto unbeaten on 47, why did the team falter?

The captain held himself accountable, saying, "I think my wicket made the difference. I was the settled batsman at the crease. Soumya and Miraz scored 30-40 runs, but in such conditions, you need to bat for a long time."

Though he praised the team's good start in bowling, Shanto also expressed disappointment at not maintaining that momentum, and credited Mohammad Nabi for his resilient batting under pressure, saying, "I think we started really well. We bowled well in the first 15-20 overs, but we couldn't execute our plans in the middle overs. The way Nabi batted was truly impressive."

After Afghanistan had lost five wickets for 71, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Nabi rescued them with a crucial sixth-wicket partnership of 104 runs. Shahidi scored 52, while Nabi top-scored with 84.

Shanto praised both players and commented on their own game plan, "I don't think we needed to attack more. The pitch had low bounce, and we just had to bowl consistently in the right areas. But as I said, Hashmat and Nabi batted very well."

Following a series win in Pakistan, Bangladesh have been caught in a losing streak. After a disastrous tour of India, where they were whitewashed in both Tests and T20s due to severe batting issues, they now face another heavy defeat to Afghanistan.

However, Shanto is hopeful for a turnaround in the next match, saying, "Our preparation was excellent, but today just wasn't our day. I hope we can bounce back strongly in the next game."