Miraz takes five as Tigers end Day 2 on high
Bangladesh off-spinner Mehedi Hasan Miraz picked up a five-wicket haul to help the Tigers bundle out Pakistan for 274 on Day 2 of the second Test against Pakistan at the Rawalpindi Stadium on Saturday.
Miraz returned five wickets for 61 runs, while pacer Taskin Ahmed scalped three. For Pakistan, Saim Ayub and Agha Salman scored fifties.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. In reply, Bangladesh opener Shadman Islam and Zakir Hasan had two overs to negotiate which they were able to do unscathed with 10 runs on the board. Shadmna had luck on his side as he got a reprieve on the very first delivery of the innings as Saud Shakkel dropped the left-handed batter at fifth slip off the bowling of Mir Hamza.
Miraz takes third as Pakistan lose seventh
Bangladesh off-spinner Mehedi Hasan Miraz picked up his third wicket to have Pakistan seven down for 236 after 76 overs on the first day of the second Test at the Rawalpindi Stadium on Saturday.
Miraz looped one up and tailender Khurram Shahzad (12) took the bait as he attempted to go for a big one over mid-off but failed to clear the fielder.
Salman Agha remained unbeaten on 27 at the other end and was joined by Mohammad Ali at the crease.
Rana strikes as Pakistan lose their sixth
Pacer Nahid Rana ended Mohammad Rizwan's resistance on 29, as Pakistan are now six down for 211 in the third session on Day 2 of the second and last Test against Bangladesh at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today.
Rana seemingly caught Rizwan by surprise with extra bounce as the ball took an outside edge and went straight into the hands of Najmul Hossain Shanto at first slip.
Khurram Shahzad has now joined Salman Agha (15) in the middle.
Bangladesh on top at Tea on Day 2
Mehedi Hasan Miraz struck twice while Taskin Ahmed and Shakib Al Hasan claimed one wicket each as the second session on Day 2 of the second and last Test between Bangladesh and Pakistan belonged to the visitors at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today.
Shakib removed Babar Azam, after he made a hard-fought 31 off 77 balls, in the penultimate over of the session, trapping him lbw with a ball that kept low. He almost struck a second time in the same over, but Zakir Hassan at short leg could not hold onto a difficult chance against Salman Agha.
Pakistan ended the session on 183-5, with Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Aghan unbeaten on 18 and 0 respectively.
Earlier in the session, Miraz struck twice in quick succession to remove Shan Masood (57) and Saim Ayub (58) before Taskin forced Saud Shakeel (16) to play on a delivery onto his stumps to reduce Pakistan to 151-4.
Babar and Rizwan nearly took Pakistan to the Tea break without losing any more wickets but Shakib didn't allow it in the end.
Pakistan made 84 runs in the session facing 30 overs for the loss of four wickets.
Miraz, Taskin strikes put Pakistan under pressure
Taskin Ahmed claimed his second wicket of the day to send back Saud Shakeel, reducing Pakistan to 151-4 in the second session on Day 2 of the second and final Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today.
Shakeel, who was dropped at slip by Mehedi Hasan Miraz on one off the bowling of Nahid Rana, played on a delivery from Taskin which took off from a good length, after making 16 off 28 balls.
The dismissal has brought Mohammad Rizwan to the middle, who joins Babar Azam (17).
Pakistan have so far lost three wickets in the session, the previous two were taken by Miraz.
Miraz strikes twice after Lunch
Mehedi Hasan Miraz struck for the second time in quick succession after the Lunch interval, this time dismissing a well set Saim Ayub for 58 to reduce Pakistan to 122-3 in the second session on Day 2 of the second and final Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today.
Miraz flighted one up, enticing Saim, who took the bait and charged down the pitch but missed the ball completely and Liton Das did the rest to complete the stumping.
The dismissal has brought Saud Shakeel to the middle who joined Babar Azam.
Earlier in the session, Miraz had trapped Shan Masood lbw for 57.
Miraz strikes after Lunch
Mehedi Hasan Miraz gave Bangladesh an early breakthrough after Lunch, trapping skipper Shan Masood lbw to reduce Pakistan to 107-2 in the second session on Day 2 of the second and final Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today.
The ball pitched on the middle stump line and straightened just enough to miss Shan's willow and crash into his pads and the umpire was quick to signal out. Shan chose to review the decision but the TV umpire upheld the original call.
Shan made 57 off 69 balls and was part of a century stand with Saim Ayub, which helped the hosts recover after losing their first wicket with no runs on the board.
His departure brought Babar Azam into the middle.
Masood, Ayub help Pakistan recover after Taskin's early wicket
Opener Saim Ayub and skipper Shan Masood helped Pakistan recover and dominate the first session after pacer Taskin Ahmed dealt an early blow on Day 2 of their second and last Test in Rawalpindi today.
At lunch, Pakistan reached 99 for the loss of one wicket with Masood remaining unbeaten on 53 while Ayub is not out on 43.
Bangladesh pacers Taskin, Nahid Rana, and Hasan Mahmud made things tough for the hosts with early swing and bounce. Taskin managed to get an early breakthrough when he clean-bowled Abdullah Shafique for a duck in the very first over, but the Pakistan batters Ayub and Masood have since been able to regroup slowly and are now just one run shy of completing a 100-run second-wicket stand.
Taskin removes Shafique to give Tigers early breakthrough
Taskin Ahmed removed opener Abdullah Shafique in the very first over to help Bangladesh get an early breakthrough on Day 2 of their second Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi today.
Taskin, who replaced injured Shoriful Islam for the game, set Shafique up brilliantly by having the ball swing away from the right-hander for the first five deliveries before pitching the final one on a good length that nipped back in to dismantle the stumps.
Shafique walked back without troubling the scorers.
Shoriful injury update: Left-arm pacer Shoriful Islam, who played a pivotal role in Bangladesh's 10-wicket victory over Pakistan in the first Test in Rawalpindi last week, has been left out for the second game today due to a groin strain. He complained of discomfort in the groin area after the first match and subsequent tests confirmed the injury. "Shoriful underwent an MRI following the first Test and the results show a Grade 1 left adductor strain. Recovery usually takes around 10 days in such cases and he has started his rehab," National Team physio Bayjedul Islam Khan was quoted as saying in a press release by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).
Bangladesh opt to bowl in 2nd Test against Pakistan
Bangladesh won the toss and elected to field first on the second day of the series-deciding second and final Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi today.
The first day of the Test was called off without toss due to persistent rain. However, playing conditions have been altered in order to make up for the lost overs on Day 1, with two extended sessions today, each of two hours and 15 minutes. A minimum of 98 overs will be bowled for the day with an additional 30 minutes given to complete the overs.
Bangladesh made one change to the playing eleven that featured in their historic 10-wicket victory in the first Test as pacer Taskin Ahmed comes in to replace unfit Shoriful Islam.
Pakistan, meanwhile, made two changes for the game with legspinner Abrar Ahmed and left-arm pacer Mir Hamza replacing pace duo of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah. Afridi was allowed to sit out this game to be with his new born son and family.
PLAYING XIs:
Bangladesh: 1 Shadman Islam, 2 Zakir Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto (capt), 4 Mominul Islam, 5 Mushfiqur Rahim, 6 Litton Das (wk), 7 Shakib Al Hasan, 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Hasan Mahmud, 11 Nahid Rana
Pakistan: 1 Abdullah Shafique, 2 Saim Ayub, 3 Shan Masood (capt), 4 Babar Azam, 5 Saud Shakeel, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Salman Ali Agha, 8 Abrar Ahmed 9 Mir Hamza, 10 Mohammad Ali, 11 Khurram Shahzad, 12 Naseem Shah
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