Bangladesh have cause to celebrate their lack of celebration
However, nothing can be taken away from the Bangladeshi batsmen in the second-innings
Man of the match Tamim Iqbal and opening partner Imrul Kayes broke a number of records on their way to a match-saving opening partnership that may go on to define an entire era of Bangladeshi cricket. PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI:
By the time the two teams shook hands at the end of the game, Bangladesh’s celebrations at having managed to save the Test from the jaws of defeat were muted at best — the draw had been a forgone conclusion for some while. And just in that fact lies the hosts’ biggest victory of the tour so far. A catch 22 where their lack of celebration was their biggest cause to celebrate.
For the wins in the limited-over matches, naysayers can point to a number of extenuating circumstances such as the changes to Pakistan’s ODI squad and the lack of experience therein; not to mention the argument that success in those formats, especially T20Is, can be fluked. Add to that the meek performances of the visitors and Bangladesh went through the series dominating almost throughout, waltzing through it largely unchallenged and untroubled thanks to a mixture of both their own improvements and the ineptitude of those that were wearing a slightly lighter shade of green.
But this, this was different. Here the established status quo seemed to have returned. A lead of 296 in the first-innings had firmly shown Bangladesh whose boss. This was back to the walls stuff, this was against the top dogs, the experienced players, the seniors. This was the most convincing of statements that the Bangladeshi Tigers’ recent success has been no mere flash in the pan.
Man of the match Tamim Iqbal and opening partner Imrul Kayes broke a number of records on their way to a match-saving opening partnership that may go on to define an entire era of Bangladeshi cricket. The highest opening partnership in the third-innings of a Test, the biggest first-innings deficit wiped out by the opening pair, the most runs in a Test by Bangladesh, and the highest score by a Bangladeshi batsman are just a few of the records shattered.
But the number that matters the most is that in nine attempts, this is the first time that Bangladesh have avoided defeat against Pakistan — the first time they can call themselves their equals.
For Pakistan fans, it made for still more frustrating viewing. The spinners looked surprisingly predictable — nullified simply by the age-old trick of skipping down the track. Junaid Khan is still clearly lacking match fitness and was missing the movement and venom that had led to him being earmarked as Pakistan’s premium bowler, despite breaching the defences of two Bangladeshi batsmen in the second-innings. Wahab Riaz’s commendable bursts of energy and extra pace manifested themselves only in beads of perspiration and not in wickets. The first-innings’ two most successful bowlers for Pakistan, Wahab and Yasir Shah with 3-55 and 3-86, went for 0-75 and 0-123 in the second-innings.
The Khulna pitch did the bowlers no favours — a surface as dead as dead can be. The ball sitting up to be hit whenever dropped even a bit short and providing nothing off the surface when pitched up. It was a pitch where a draw was the most likely outcome, with neither set of bowlers ever looking capable of taking 20 wickets.
However, nothing can be taken away from the Bangladeshi batsmen in the second-innings, who batted without even giving Pakistan a sniff — bar a couple of dubious umpiring decisions — which is more than what could be said about their first-innings performance, managing to score 555-6 at better than four an over.
Bangladesh must harness this momentum and look to the future. They need to repeat the efforts of Khulna in the second Test at the Sher-e-Bangla; and even a drawn Test series would make for a more impressive achievement than the ODI whitewash. They will be hoping to celebrate more lack of celebrations.
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By the time the two teams shook hands at the end of the game, Bangladesh’s celebrations at having managed to save the Test from the jaws of defeat were muted at best — the draw had been a forgone conclusion for some while. And just in that fact lies the hosts’ biggest victory of the tour so far. A catch 22 where their lack of celebration was their biggest cause to celebrate.
For the wins in the limited-over matches, naysayers can point to a number of extenuating circumstances such as the changes to Pakistan’s ODI squad and the lack of experience therein; not to mention the argument that success in those formats, especially T20Is, can be fluked. Add to that the meek performances of the visitors and Bangladesh went through the series dominating almost throughout, waltzing through it largely unchallenged and untroubled thanks to a mixture of both their own improvements and the ineptitude of those that were wearing a slightly lighter shade of green.
But this, this was different. Here the established status quo seemed to have returned. A lead of 296 in the first-innings had firmly shown Bangladesh whose boss. This was back to the walls stuff, this was against the top dogs, the experienced players, the seniors. This was the most convincing of statements that the Bangladeshi Tigers’ recent success has been no mere flash in the pan.
Man of the match Tamim Iqbal and opening partner Imrul Kayes broke a number of records on their way to a match-saving opening partnership that may go on to define an entire era of Bangladeshi cricket. The highest opening partnership in the third-innings of a Test, the biggest first-innings deficit wiped out by the opening pair, the most runs in a Test by Bangladesh, and the highest score by a Bangladeshi batsman are just a few of the records shattered.
But the number that matters the most is that in nine attempts, this is the first time that Bangladesh have avoided defeat against Pakistan — the first time they can call themselves their equals.
For Pakistan fans, it made for still more frustrating viewing. The spinners looked surprisingly predictable — nullified simply by the age-old trick of skipping down the track. Junaid Khan is still clearly lacking match fitness and was missing the movement and venom that had led to him being earmarked as Pakistan’s premium bowler, despite breaching the defences of two Bangladeshi batsmen in the second-innings. Wahab Riaz’s commendable bursts of energy and extra pace manifested themselves only in beads of perspiration and not in wickets. The first-innings’ two most successful bowlers for Pakistan, Wahab and Yasir Shah with 3-55 and 3-86, went for 0-75 and 0-123 in the second-innings.
The Khulna pitch did the bowlers no favours — a surface as dead as dead can be. The ball sitting up to be hit whenever dropped even a bit short and providing nothing off the surface when pitched up. It was a pitch where a draw was the most likely outcome, with neither set of bowlers ever looking capable of taking 20 wickets.
However, nothing can be taken away from the Bangladeshi batsmen in the second-innings, who batted without even giving Pakistan a sniff — bar a couple of dubious umpiring decisions — which is more than what could be said about their first-innings performance, managing to score 555-6 at better than four an over.
Bangladesh must harness this momentum and look to the future. They need to repeat the efforts of Khulna in the second Test at the Sher-e-Bangla; and even a drawn Test series would make for a more impressive achievement than the ODI whitewash. They will be hoping to celebrate more lack of celebrations.
Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.