OPINION
Follow UsCricket across venues and formats has become more and more bowler dominated. Pitches in the sub-continent have also contributed heavily to this trend as they have moved from being batting havens and rank turners to just being any bowler's dream. Apart from the extreme heat and unfamiliar conditions, teams from outside sub-continent often buckle down. With the 2021 men's T20 World Cup set to be hosted by similar pitches in the United Arab Emirates and Oman, here are a few instances where teams from outside sub-continent have collapsed spectacularly.
Netherlands - 39 all out vs Sri lanka (2014, Chattogram)
Four ducks, five single-digit scores and six extras. These were the highlights of Netherlands' innings in the 2014 World T20 group phase match against Sri Lanka when they recorded the then lowest T20I total. Thanks to Angelo Mathews and Nuwan Kulasekara, the Dutch top-three were back in the hut with just a single run on the board and were 7-36 after Ajantha Mendis (3-16) wreaked havoc with his mystery spin. Tom Cooper's 18-ball 16 was the only double-digit score in the entire line-up as the Dutch lost their final three wickets on 39. Sri Lanka chased down the target of 40 runs within 5 overs for the loss of just one wicket.
Kenya - 56 all out vs Afghanistan (2013, Sharjah)
Before Netherlands bagged the unwanted record for the lowest men's T20I score, Kenya held the infamous record after being dispatched for 56 runs by then newcomers Afghanistan at Sharjah. In first of the two-match series, Afghanistan made 162/6 in 20 overs after Asghar Afghan (43 off 34 balls) and Samiullah Shinwari (39 not out off 14 balls) were aided by captain Mohammad Nabi's 26 off 24 balls. In reply, Kenya opener Alex Obanda began well with a boundary off Shapoor Zadran's first ball but edged the final ball to keeper which triggered a collapse. Pacer Hamid Hasan removed Morris Ouma for a duck and captain Collins Obuya for a single run to make it 6/3. Rakep Patel (11 off 20 balls) and Nelson Odhiambo (13 off 36 balls) were able to resist more than the others, but didn't last long. Odhiambo and Shem Ngoche (3) added 20 runs for the eighth wicket, as the visitors went from losing three wickets on 21 to 41/8. Leg-spinner Shinwari, pacer Mirwais Ashraf claimed two wickets each while Hamid claimed a sensational 3-4 to set up 106-run win for Afghanistan.
New Zealand - 60 all out vs Sri Lanka (2014, Chattogram)
Exactly six days after thrashing Netherlands, Sri Lanka spinners Rangana Herath and Sachitra Senanayake made a mockery out of a strong New Zealand side at Chattogram. Herath claimed astounding figures of 5-3 which should've been 7-3 given he had a hand in two run-outs in the World T20 Group 1 match. It was evident that the pitch was a rank turner after Sri Lanka were all out for 119 batting first, but the Black Caps' capitulation came as a shocker. Opener Kane Williamson scored 42 off the team total of 60 which had three ducks and an injured Corey Anderson who couldn't come out to bat. After putting on a run-a-ball 18 in the first three overs, Martin Guptill tried for a futile second run which opened the pandora's box. Herath then dismissed captain Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor and James Neesham all for ducks and Luke Ronchi for 2, to reduce the Kiwis to 29/5. Senanayaka then chipped in with the wickets of Nathan McCullum and Kyle Mills before Herath wrapped up the innings at 60 by dismissing Trent Boult.
West Indies - 60 all out vs Pakistan (2018, Karachi)
May be it was touring Pakistan after a gap of 12 years, but reigning T20 world champions West Indies were out of their depth when they faced off the hosts in the first of the three matches at the national stadium in Karachi. They used seven bowlers in the first innings, but couldn't contain an avalanche of runs from Fakhar Zaman (39 off 24 balls), Hussain Talat (41 off 37 balls) and captain Sarfaraz Ahmed (38 off 22 balls). Shoaib Malik launched a late assault of 14-ball 37 as Pakistan put on massive 203/5 in 20 overs. In reply, West Indies lost opener Chadwick Walton off the fourth ball in Mohammad Nawaz's first over. Mohammad Amir produced two lethal deliveries to send back Andre Fletcher and Jason Mohammed for ducks in the second over. Keeper Denesh Ramdin followed suit in Hasan Ali's bowling when Pakistani spinners took charge. Shadab Khan sent back Rovman Powell, while Malik and Talat cleaned up the lower order as the Windies went from 15/4 to 60/9. Last man Veerasamy Perumal couldn't come to bat which brought an end to the visitors' innings.
New Zealand - 60 all out vs Bangladesh (2021, Dhaka)
Coming into the match New Zealand men had never lost a T20I to Bangladesh, winning all their previous 10 encounters. With no big names in the squad except the experienced Tom Latham, the Kiwis chose to bat on a Mirpur pitch that was a minefield. However, facing a full-strength Bangladesh who were on the back of a maiden series win against Australia, was a task that proved insurmountable. The spin trio of Nasum Ahmed, Shakib al Hasan and Mahedi Hasan barely put a step wrong as they battered New Zealand to reduce them to 9/4 by the end of fourth over. The partnership of 34 between Henry Nicholls (18) and captain Tom Latham (18) was the highest contribution of the innings as rest of the batsmen failed to reach double digits. Nasum Ahmed, Mohammad Saifuddin and Shakib al Hasan all picked up two wickets each while Mustafizur Rahman claimed 3-13 to emulate Sri Lanka from 2014. With just 61 to defend, Kiwi spinners Ajaz Patel, Cole McConchie removed openers Mohammad Naim and Liton Das for a single run. However, the experienced trio of Shakib (25 off 33 balls), Mushfiqur Rahim (16 not out off 26 balls) and Mahmudullah (14 not out off 22 balls) took Bangladesh over the line with five overs to spare.
