Bangladesh’s under-19 national cricket team won the tri-nation series trophy at Harare Sports Club, Zimbabwe, after defeating South Africa in the final by 33 runs on Sunday.

Batting first, Bangladesh got off to a promising start despite losing the toss. Opening batsmen Zawad Abrar (21 off 42) and Rifat Beg (16 off 22) set the tone early, but both fell before the powerplay ended. Captain Azizul Hakim Tamim also struggled to settle, scoring just 7 runs off 28 balls.

Bangladesh found themselves in trouble at 65 for 3, but Rizan Hossan and Kalam Siddiki steadied the innings with an impressive partnership. Their 117-run partnership was broken when Kalam was caught at long-on, ending his innings at 65 runs. Rizan had departed at 95 runs.

In the latter stages, Mohammad Abdullah contributed 38 runs and Samiun Basir added 13, helping Bangladesh post a competitive total of 269 runs.

Chasing 270, South Africa’s young side started aggressively with Jorich Van Schalkwyk and Adnaan Lagadien forging a swift fifty-run partnership early on. However, Al Fahad ended their stand by dismissing Adnan, who scored 40 runs off 31 balls, caught by Azizul Hakim.

Fahad continued his good form by dismissing opener Van Schalkwyk (19 runs off 22 balls). Captain Muhammed Bulbulia and Jason Rowles attempted to stabilize the innings, but Bulbulia was bowled by Rizan after scoring 31. Rowles, who was in good form, managed only 35 runs before falling.

Ntando Soni and Bandile Mbatha briefly revived South Africa’s hopes with a 59-run partnership, but Rizan struck again to end their resistance. Rizan picked up two more wickets to complete his fifer and Bangladesh’s 33-run-win.

Earlier in the tournament, Bangladesh topped the league table with ten points after winning five of their six matches, setting the stage for this memorable triumph.