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DHAKA, Bangladesh -- Another purposeful bowling and fielding effort narrowly failed to save the Sagicor High Performance Centre team from a four-wicket defeat against Bangladesh-A in the final match of their Twenty20 series on Friday.

Jason Dawes led the Sagicor HPC bowling with 2-20 from his allotted four overs, as Bangladesh successfully chased a modest target of 106 on a typically slow, low Sher-e-Bangla Stadium pitch.

The visitors’ captain Carlos Brathwaite saw the victory formalised from his bowling, when Forhad Reza and Sabbir Rumman scrambled a leg bye with two deliveries remaining.

The result meant that Bangladesh-A won the two-match series 1-0, after rain forced a no-result in the first T20 the previous day at the same venue.

Only three Sagicor HPC batsmen reached double figures – Kyle Hope led the way with 30, Kjorn Ottley made 20 and Trevon Griffith added 17.

The emerging West Indies players again failed to dictate terms to the Bangladesh-A spin bowlers, as Nazmul Apu ended with 3-19 from his allotted four overs to earn the Man-of-the-Match award and Enamul Haque Jr finished with 3-27 from four overs, with medium-fast bowler Forhad Reza supporting with 2-25 from 3.4 overs.

Dawes then gave the Sagicor HPC a bright start to their defence, when he removed Imrul Kayes for 14 and bowled fellow opener Anamul Haque for six, leaving the home team 22 for two in the sixth over.

The Caribbean side met defiance, when Bangladesh-A captain Naeem Islam, a constant thorn in his opponents’ side in previous matches, came to the crease and put on 44 for third wicket with top-scorer Shamsur Rahman.

The Sagicor HPC bowlers continued to bowl tightly however, and Miguel Cummins made the breakthrough, when he removed Shamsur for 29 in the 14th over and left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican set Bangladesh-A back further on 69 for four, when he scalped Naeem in the next over.

But the visitors met further resistance, when Ziaur Rahman hit one four and four six in 20 from 14 balls to put the hosts back on track before left-arm fast bowler Sheldon Cotterrell bowled him in the penultimate over.

Brathwaite also bowled Marshall Ayub for one in the final over, but Bangladesh-A only required a single at that stage.

Earlier, the Sagicor HPC again had the worst possible start, when enterprising opener Andre Fletcher was bowled for a duck with the first delivery of the match.

Hope, Ottley and Griffith helped the emerging Windies players recover from the early setback, but runs came at a premium on the difficult pitch and several batsmen perished trying to loose the shackles.

The match was the final act on a month-long tour of Bangladesh for the Sagicor HPC and they begin the long journey home on Saturday.

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