AP NEWS – At North Sound, Antigua, Pat Cummins claimed the first hat-trick of the tournament as Australia beat Bangladesh by 28 runs after rain delays forced the result to go to the Duckworth-Lewis system.
Cummins dismissed Mahmdullah and Mahedi Hasan with the last two balls of the 18th over and Towhid Hridoy with the first ball of the 20th as Australia restricted Bangladesh to 140-8.
Australia was 100-2 when heavy rain set in after 11.2 overs, well ahead of the winning score it needed at the time. The umpires finally called off the match around 12.30 a.m. local time.
Cummins was the seventh player to complete a hat-trick — three wickets with three balls — at a Twenty20 World Cup and the second Australian after Brett Lee, who achieved the feat, also against Bangladesh, in 2007.
“I had no idea,” Cummins said. “At the end of the over I saw it come up on the screen so I thought I’ll make sure I remember but I totally forgot about it. I had a few (hat-tricks) in juniors but never for Australia.”
David Warner and Travis Head then shared a 65-run opening partnership in 6.5 overs to set up Australia’s run chase. Head was out for 31, but Warner went on to make a half-century from 34 balls. He finished 53 not out.
Mitchell Starc bowled Tanzid Hasan with the third ball of the match after Australia sent Bangladesh in, and Bangladesh struggled to create momentum, which was hampered by regular wicket falls.
Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto made 41 from 36 balls and shared a half-century partnership from 42 balls with Litton Das (16). But after the second-wicket pair were separated with the total was 58-2 in the ninth over, Bangladesh struggled to create partnerships.
Adam Zampa dismissed both Litton Das and Shanto, bowling Das with a ball that snuck under the bat and cannoned off the back leg onto the stumps. Shanto knelt to sweep a ball, which skidded on a hit on the knee roll in front of the middle.
Zampa also took a catch from Glenn Maxwell’s bowling to remove Rishad Hossain, who had been promoted in order to hurry the scoring but managed only two runs from four balls.