A five-wicket haul by Shakib Al Hasan and well supported by Mehedi Hasan Miraz saw Tigers bowlers restricts Australia to 217 in their first innings in the first Test the first Test of Rocket two-match Test series at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium at Mirpur, reports BSS.
Bangladesh now have 88-run lead after the second day’s play with nine wickets in hand after they started their second innings in the afternoon and scored 45 for 1 at stumps.
Opener Tamim Iqbal with 30 and Taijul Islam with 0 were the two night watch batsmen on the crease. Bangladesh lost the only wicket of Soumya Sarkar (15) off Ashton Asgar delivery just before the close of second day’s play.
It was another good day for Shakib who took two wickets on the first day, today finished his spell with five wickets for 68 runs while Miraz claimed three for 62 runs.
Earlier, Australia’s batting was once again in a state of shambles, after a shocking collapse but poor fielding saw Australian tail wagged from 144 for 8 to be dismissed for 217 . This was in reply to a Bangladesh’s first innings total of 260, giving the home side a 43-run first innings lead.
Australia were fighting to avoid embarrassment, after the lost of three wickets in the first session on day two of the first Test that left them in a precarious position against Bangladesh.
Despite a face-saving 69-run partnership between Peter Handscomb and Matt Renshaw, Australia was still trailed by 137 runs with only four wickets in hand and 6-123 at lunch.
Earlier, the visitors resumed their first innings on the second day with overnight score of 18 for 3, Aussie player’s heart sank in the dressing room when the normally reliable skipper Steve Smith decided to charge down the wicket to spinner Meheidi Hasan, only to be bowled. It was an uncharacteristically whimsical piece of play from the Australian skipper that left his side on the brink of crisis. Australian captain Steve Smith was out only adding eight runs.
Young guns Renshaw and Handscomb came together and showed their teammates how to knuckle down and Australia passed the 100 mark for the loss of 4.
However, in a horror 20-minute period just before lunch, both Handscomb (33) and Renshaw (45) succumbed to spinners.
Handscomb had played beautifully, sweeping superbly and barely playing a false shot – until he was caught too far back on his crease and was trapped plumb lbw.
Then in the final over before lunch Renshaw dabbled at one he didn’t need to outside off stump to be caught at first slip and hand Hasan his second.
After coming together with Australia 116 in arrears and only two wickets in hand, tailenders Agar and Cummins showed the batsmen how to bat with a gutsy 49-run stand that ultimately took the tourists to a more respectable total of 217.
Agar was superb with bat to almost top score on 41 not out off 97 balls but had a sitter Cummins bunted into the sky when on 11 been held onto, Tigers would have accumulated almost 100 runs lead in the first innings.
It was Bangladesh’s day again. They’ve assumed control of this Test, leading by 88 with nine wickets in hand on a pitch that is turning, bouncing and seaming around.
It could have been a better day had Soumya not thrown it away in the penultimate over of the day. Soumya Sarkar committed hara-kiri as he jumps out his crease and tried to hit over the the long-on but the ball skews off the outside half.
Khawaja takes the catch, finally. Juggle, parry and taken. As the ball came down Khawaja settles underneath it at long-on, the ball pops out of his reverse-cupped hands, he drops the second attempt into his body, then gets inches off the ground to take the catch.
