Soumya Sarkar is bowled by Varun Aaron on 37 as Bangladesh are dismissed for 256. PHOTO: AFP
After the entire morning session was washed out, India bowled out Bangladesh for 256 in their first innings to gain a lead of 206 runs over their own effort of 462-6 declared.
Given 30 overs to bat a second time, the hosts were 23-0 after 15 overs when both sides agreed to call off the match at the Khan Shaheb Osman Ali stadium.
Ashwin and fellow off-spinner Harbhajan Singh shared eight wickets to lead India’s brave bid to win a match in which bad weather interrupted play on all five days, including the entire second day being washed out.
The duo took centre-stage after India, who had won the toss and decided to bat first, were propelled by Shikhar Dhawan (173) and Murali Vijay’s (150) opening partnership of 283 and Ajinkya Rahane’s 98.
For Bangladesh, star all-rounder Shakib alHasan picked up four of the six wickets before opener Imrul Kayes top-scored with 72 and debutant Litton Das made 44.
India slipped from third to fourth place in the official rankings behind South Africa, Australia and New Zealand because of the draw and captain Virat Kohli was left bemoaning the weather. “It was disappointing for both teams,” he said. “We would have liked to have five days of cricket.”
However, he was happy with his side’s performance in the limited time they spent out on the middle. “Whatever time we had on the field, the boys had top intensity and put in a really good effort,” he said. “We had a really good time with the bat, especially Vijay, Shikhar and Rahane. It was a selfless performance to score quickly, knowing we won’t have too much time because of the rain. Ashwin and Harbhajan are quality spinners, so watching them bowl together is very pleasing for a captain. They put batsmen under pressure throughout.”
Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim now has his sights on the upcoming ODI series and said the 3-0 sweep against Pakistan leaves his team in good stead. “The one-day squad is looking pretty good, but this is a strong Indian side,” he said. “We played well against Pakistan, so hopefully we will get confidence from that.”
Published in The Express Tribune, June 15th, 2015.
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