Bangladesh enhanced their dominance in the second Test at Sylhet as Mushfiqur Rahim’s steady century and disciplined batting deepened Pakistan’s difficulties on day three. Resuming at 110 for 3 with a slim lead, Bangladesh gradually pushed Pakistan further behind, concluding the session at 238 for 4 in their second innings. This extended their overall advantage to 284 runs.
The day started with Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mushfiqur aiming to build on the foundation established late on day two. Pakistan made an early breakthrough when Khurram Shehzad trapped Shanto lbw for 15 at 115, briefly raising hopes of a collapse. However, Mushfiqur ensured no further openings for the bowlers, calmly advancing the innings and reaching another Test century.
Pakistan’s bowling attack, which had shown promise in Bangladesh’s first innings, struggled to sustain pressure for long periods as the hosts rotated the strike effectively and capitalized on loose deliveries. Khurram remained the most threatening seamer, but his support was inconsistent.
Earlier, Bangladesh had closed day two on 110 for 3 after bowling Pakistan out for 232 in their first innings, securing a useful lead. Pakistan began the second day at 21 without loss but quickly lost both openers. Azan Awais was dismissed for 13, and Abdullah Fazal managed only 9 as Bangladesh’s seamers exploited favorable conditions.
Shan Masood resisted briefly with 21 before Babar Azam played the lone significant innings for Pakistan with a fluent 68. Once Babar was dismissed, Pakistan’s middle order again failed to convert starts into substantial scores. Saud Shakeel made 8, Salman Agha scored 21, and Mohammad Rizwan added 13.
Lower-order contributions from Sajid Khan (38) and Hasan Ali (18) helped Pakistan surpass 200, but the innings never seriously challenged Bangladesh’s first-innings total.
Nahid Rana and Taijul Islam were the standout bowlers for Bangladesh, taking three wickets each, while Taskin Ahmed and Mehidy Hasan Miraz contributed two wickets apiece in another clinical bowling performance.
Bangladesh had earlier posted 278 in their first innings on the opening day, propelled by Litton Das’ brilliant 126. Khurram Shehzad claimed four wickets for Pakistan, Mohammad Abbas took three, while Hasan Ali and Sajid Khan shared the remaining wickets.
Pakistan entered the Test under pressure after losing the opening match of the two-Test series by 104 runs. Bangladesh now look firmly positioned to secure a historic series sweep unless Pakistan can stage a remarkable comeback in the remaining two days.
