Captain Babar Azam and recalled Mohammad Hafeez have struck unbeaten half centuries as Pakistan cruised to a nine-wicket victory over Bangladesh in the second Twenty20, keeping alive their hopes of retaining the No.1 ranking.
Pakistan could stay top if they complete a 3-0 clean sweep by winning the final Twenty20 of the three-match series on Monday.
Recalled 39-year-old Hafeez made an unbeaten 67 off 49 balls while No.1-ranked Twenty20 batsman Babar remained 66 not out as Pakistan eased to 1-137 with more than three overs to spare on Saturday.
Both batsmen entertained a weekend crowd of around 20,000 at the Gaddafi Stadium with a splendid 131-run stand against a listless Bangladesh bowling attack.
Shafiul Islam was the lone successful bowler when he had Ahsan Ali caught at mid off for a duck in his first over before Babar and Hafeez took charge.
Bangladesh's disappointing performance was summed up when wicketkeeper Liton Das dropped Hafeez soon after he had reached his half century.
Hafeez struck nine fours and a six while Babar hit seven boundaries and a six.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh's top-order batsmen struggled for the second consecutive day as the side was restricted to 6-136.
Earlier, opening batsman Tamim Iqbal laboured to 65 from 53 balls before being run out in the 18th over.
The inexperienced pace trio of Mohammad Hasnain (2-20), Shaheen Afridi (1-22) and Haris Rauf (1-27) combined to bowl 12 overs, conceding only 69 runs between them and sharing four wickets.
Captain Mahmudullah surprisingly didn't put himself in the top order while Soumya Sarkar came in after Tamim's wicket with only 14 balls left in the innings.
Bangladesh will round out the first phase of the Pakistan tour on Monday with the team not wanting to stay in the country more than a week due to security concerns.
Bangladesh will return for the first Test in Rawalpindi from February 7. After a break of almost two months, Bangladesh will play an ODI and the second Test in Karachi from April 3.
Australian Associated Press
