Bangladesh pips Kenya in final of ICC Trophy

Bangladesh, on a roll, defeated Kenya by two wickets off the last ball of a thrilling final to lift the ICC Trophy and spark unprecedented celebrations in their country.

Facing Kenya's total of 241 which was largely inspired by a brilliant innings of 147 Steve Tikolo, Bangladesh was set a revised target of 166 in 25 overs thanks to morning rain and a delayed start.

Bangladesh lost its first wicket without a run on the board, but the other opener Mohammad Rafique shared in a brisk 50 run partnership for the second wicket with Minhajul Nannu, both of whom made 26. Number three batsman Aminul Islam made a brisk 37 and Mohammad Akram Khan a rapidfire 22, giving the thousands of immigrant Bangladeshis who landed up at the Kuala Lumpur stadium something to shout about.

Bangladesh needed 48 runs off the last 5.4 overs at just under 8 runs per over against the best bowling attack in the tournament, and 19 off the last two overs. However, Mohammed Saiful Islam Khan with one six, and Mohammad Khaled Mashud with two sixes, slammed the remaining runs.

The last over - bowled by Kenya skipper Maurice Odumbe - was especially dramatic, with Bangladesh poised to get one run off one ball for a win. Mohammd Hasibul Rahman, the number ten batsman, played with poise to get the winning run, taking advantage of a captaincy error wherein Odumbe retained a spread out field instead of bringing his players in to stop the single.

"Our boys did what was expected of them," said Bangladesh manager Gazi Hossain. Kenyan manager Jasmer Singh, however, was furious - "I have nothing to say," he said, and walked off at the end of the game.

At the end of the tournament, Kenya and Scotland qualified, along with Bangladesh, to play in the 1999 World Cup alongside the nine Test playing nations.

In Bangladesh, the news was greeted with celebrations as banks and shopping malls suspended business, and motorists blared their horns in Dhaka and other cities. Youthful merry makers paraded the national flag on the main streets, while Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina marked the celebrations by announcing gifts of cars and cash to the victorious cricketers, who will receive a state reception when they return home late Monday.

The mood was a stark contrast to 1994, when Bangladesh fell short of winning the trophy in Kenya. At that time, irate fans torched the Bangladesh Cricket Board office in Dhaka.

Former Indian cricketer and ex-national team manager Sandeep Patil, now coaching Kenya, meanwhile returned to Bombay expressing satisfaction that he had managed to get his team qualified for the seventh World Cup, to be held in England in the year 2000.

"My biggest challenge now is to gear Kenya up for the Cup," said Patil, who was unceremoniously removed from the Indian team's managership last September. "I have drawn up a hard schedule for Kenya in the run up to the Cup, so that they will be at the peak of their form in England," said Patil.

Kenya, it will be recalled, had shocked the West Indies in the league round of the 1996 World Cup in India.