| Scores | Upcoming | Results |
New Zealand 128 for 5 (Nicholls 36*, Blundell 30*, Saifuddin 2-28) beat Bangladesh 76 (Mushfiqur 20*, Ajaz 4-16, McConchie 3-15) by 52 runs
Dhaka: Brilliant spin bowling from Ajaz Patel (4/16) and Cole McConchie (3/15) helped New Zealand register a thumping 52-run win over Bangladesh in the third T20I in Mirpur.
Chasing 129, Bangladesh were given a taste of their own medicine as New Zealand bowlers exerted their dominance.
Although the hosts got off to rollicking start with Liton Das smashing five fours in 2.3 overs, their innings quickly unraveled.
Cole McConchie removed Liton, pinging him in front of middle and off. Before Bangladesh could recover, Ajaz Patel struck in the next over with two big wickets.
First to depart was Mahedi Hasan, who looked to flick but ended up edging it to Henry Nicholls at mid-wicket. He was followed by Shakib, who went for a duck.
Rachin Ravindra got in on the act two overs later with the wicket of Mohammad Naim – dragging a thick inside edge off his bat onto his stumps.
The hosts were pushed back further with another Patel double-wicket over.
Removing Mahmudullah (3) and Afif Hossain (0) in back-to-back deliveries, Patel reduced Bangladesh to 44/6 in 10 overs, requiring 85 more to win.
Although Mushfiqur Rahim dropped anchor at one end and looked to revive the Bangladesh innings, they suffered further.
McConchie picked up two more wickets in back-to-back overs, removing Nurul Hasan (8) and Saifuddin (8).
In the end, Bangladesh were bowled out for 76 in the 20th over giving New Zealand a big 52-run victory.
Earlier, after being asked to bat first, New Zealand did well to reach a respectable total, considering their poor performance in the first two matches of the series.
Burying their ghosts of 60-all out from the first game, they posted a competitive 128/5.
Their start was positive with Will Young hitting two fours off Mahedi Hasan in the first over.
However, Mustafizur Rahman was brought into the attack in the third over and promptly dismissed Young's partner Finn Allen for 15, who failed to read a slow off-cutter and ended up chipping it to mid-on.
Young hit three more fours signifying his intent but a double-wicket over by Saifuddin again put the brakes on New Zealand's scoring rate.
Saifuddin first removed the dangerous-looking Young, trapping him in front of middle and off for 20.
Two balls later, he removed Colin de Grandhomme lbw. The Blackcaps lost two more wickets for just 16 runs – Rachin Ravindra (20) was bowled by Mahmudullah, while Tom Latham (5) was caught and bowled by Mahedi Hasan.
At 62/5 with nine more overs to go, New Zealand took their time to settle.
The Bangladesh bowlers were able to choke the scoring rate but failed to create any breakthroughs.
Henry Nicholls and Tom Blundell managed to hold on and kept the scoreboard ticking.
They rotated strike and pounced on the bad balls, stitching a defying sixth-wicket stand. Their unbeaten 66-run partnership helped the Blackcaps post 128/5.
