Far from being burdened by the responsibility, Bangladesh batsman Mahmudullah says he relishes the opportunities to fish his team out of trouble

Bangladesh batsman Mahmudullah Riyad revels in winning a close game after having been on the wrong side of dramatic finishes in the past

Mustafizur Rahman bowled a superb last over, conceding just four runs when eight were needed, as Bangladesh won the Asia Cup Super Four match against Afghanistan by three runs at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi yesterday.

When Imrul Kayes was sleeping in Khulna just two days ago, perhaps even he did not dream that he would be the one to steady the ship alongside Mahmudullah Riyad on his comeback to the national team with Bangladesh reeling at 87 for five against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup.

Bangladesh batsman Mushffiqu Rahim became the third player from the country to reach 5,000 ODI runs.

The rule for two new balls to be used from both ends introduced new dimension to cricket and during their last Asia Cup game against India, Bangladesh faced the new ball from two ends with a new opening pair. With an unstable opening pair and the loss of Tamim Iqbal to injury, the Tigers have not seen the familiar Tamim-Shakib Al Hasan partnerships which thrived in the recent few series.

Bangladesh’s Asia Cup campaign hangs in the balance after their defeat to India in the first Super Four match. They lost to Afghanistan as well in the last group phase match and will face them today, seeking to win and stay in the competition. The Tigers’ vice-captain Shakib Al Hasan believed that his team has the ability to turn things around and overcome their conquerors from the group stage.

We look at the possible scenarios and equations which will Bangladesh alive in the tournament after today's matches are played.

Much like Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan, the opening duo of Imrul Kayes and Soumya Sarkar were surprised by their sudden recall to the Tigers' camp for the ongoing Asia Cup.

It is a telling statistic that even in Bangladesh's flying start to the Asia Cup on September 15, when Mushfiqur Rahim's sublime 144 authored a 137-run hammering of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh left three balls unused in their total of 261.

The 13th-hour inclusion of discarded national openers Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes in Bangladesh's Asia Cup squad may have seemed like reinforcement for a troubled team on Saturday evening, but in the cold light of day it seems little more than a panicked reaction to bad performance.

Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza says that he was on the field of play when the decision to recall discarded national openers Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes for the ongoing Asia Cup was finalised

The 136-run loss against Afghanistan may have been in an inconsequential match in the context of the Asia Cup as – rightly or wrongly – the Asian Cricket Council had already decided the group placements beforehand, but the manner of Thursday’s defeat should be concerning for Bangladesh nonetheless because it exposed a lack of depth in the reserves.

Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan won the toss and elected to field in their last Asia Cup Group B match against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi.

The last time that Bangladesh played Afghanistan in the ODI format, Tamim Iqbal had hit a run-a-ball century to give the Tigers a commanding total. Tigers went on to win by 141 runs in that game in 2016.

Even when Bangladesh seemed to be doing everything right, circumstances have conspired against them. They take on Afghanistan today in their last Asia Cup Group B match in Abu Dhabi AT 5:30pm Bangladesh time, having already qualified for the next stage.

What increasingly appears to be favouritism towards cricketing powerhouse India has turned the Asia Cup into a near farce. Even with two group matches left and Group A and Group B champions yet to be decided, on Wednesday morning the Asian Cricket Council has published the fixtures list of the Super Four stage starting on Friday.

India crushed Pakistan by eight wickets in their long-awaited Asia Cup match which failed to live up to its hype in Dubai on Wednesday.

Bangladesh had been looking for stable opening partner for Tamim Iqbal and tried out a few options over the past few months, especially in ODI format. With Tamim himself now injured, Tigers will have to look to play the rest of the Asia Cup counting on Liton Das, who himself is looking to prove his mettle in the ODI format while Nazmul Hossain Shanto, yet to play any ODIs, is likely get the nod to open with Liton.

Kedar Jadhav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar took three wickets apiece as Pakistan crumbled to 162 all out in their Asia Cup match against arch rivals India in Dubai on Wednesday.