Bangladesh show they ain't at the Champions Trophy just to make up the numbers

Bangladesh have come of age since that epic win over England in the 2015 World Cup, beating big-name teams like India and South Africa.

However, heading into this ICC Champions Trophy, where they would play the same team they beat so famously in Adelaide first up, there were still questions over whether Bangladesh could turn it on, like they have done so often at home, in unfamiliar conditions and in a pressure cooker situation like the CT.

Well, they certainly showed they can.

After losing the toss and being asked to bat first on a gorgeous morning at The Oval in London, Bangladesh went about producing a fantastic batting performance, with their experienced heads leading the way.

The way Bangladesh began their innings, it looked like a matter of time before England scythed through this batting lineup and picked up a comfortable win – there was no intent, with survival, in the first ten overs, the only plan.

That plan, though, proved to be the right one, as Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar switched gears, effortlessly and brilliantly once the first Powerplay was done.

Usually, you see the aggressive shots in the first ten overs, when there are only two fielders out in the deep, but Bangladesh flipped that script around.

After scoring just 36 runs in the first ten overs, Bangladesh went on to pick up 57 in the next eight, and just like that the momentum was back and a score of 300 and over looked on.

England missed a trick by going in for an extra pacer in Jake Ball, who would go for 82 runs in his ten overs, ahead of the leg-spinner Adil Rashid, because due to the sameness of the attack, Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim, who would put on a brilliant partnership of 166 in 25.1 overs, were able to get used to the bowling attack.

Eoin Morgan was also not helped by the fact that Chris Woakes had to go off with a side strain after bowling just two overs, but it was that pace, pace, pace that did them in this innings.

The way Tamim and Mushfiqur played in that partnership was quite impressive. They never allowed the England bowlers to settle, and realising that the pacers were largely bowling back of a length, they adjusted accordingly.

Tamim's ninth hundred in ODI cricket was met with a large roar by a sizeable Bangladesh crowd at The Oval, and going into the final six overs of the innings, the team in green looked set for 320 and over.

The momentum did quell a bit when Tamim (128, 142b, 12x4, 3x6) and Mushfiqur (79, 72b, 8x4) fell off consecutive deliveries from Liam Plunkett, and while 305/6 was a good score, on a great batting wicket and against an England batting lineup that is, well, scary, it proved to be not enough, as the hosts cantered home in the chase, with Joe Root oozing class.

However, what Bangladesh showed with this batting innings is that they aren't in this Champions Trophy just to make up the numbers.