RAWALPINDI: Off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz grabbed five wickets to help Bangladesh skittle Pakistan for 274 on the second day of the second Test in Rawalpindi on Saturday.
The 26-year-old recorded his 10th five-wicket haul in Tests to cap a good day for the tourists, who are looking to win only their third away series.
Bangladesh finished the day on 10-0 despite opener Shadman Islam being dropped by Saud Shakeel off Mir Hamza on the first ball of the innings.
But it was Bangladesh’s bowlers who steered them to a strong position.
Mehidy dismissed Pakistan captain Shan Masood for 57 and opener Saim Ayub for 58 after the home team had been well-placed on 99-1 at lunch.
He produced match-turning figures of 4-21 in Bangladesh’s 10-wicket win in the first Test a week ago, and snared Khurram Shahzad for 12 and then Mohammad Ali and Abrar Ahmed to end the innings with 5-61.
Mehidy was ably assisted by fast bowler Taskin Ahmed, who took 3-57.
Agha Salman, dropped on nought by Zakir Hasan off Shakib Al Hasan, was Taskin’s third wicket after scoring 54 with three boundaries and two sixes.
Taskin said he was happy to be back in the longer format of Test cricket.
“It’s a good sporting pitch and we need to bat the full day and get a good lead,” Taskin said.
“It’s great to be back in red ball (cricket) after one-and-a-half years. I enjoyed that and adapted well.”
Salman said the pitch was better than the first Test track and should provide help for the spin bowlers.
“Unlike the first Test, this wicket has lively grass and I believe we have enough runs,” he said.
Desperate for a win to level the two-match series, Pakistan started well but lost wickets at regular intervals to slump from a relatively strong 107-1 on a greenish but slow Rawalpindi pitch.
Taskin bowled first Test centurion Saud Shakeel for 16, the left-hander having already survived a dropped catch by Mehidy off Nahid Rana on one.
Babar Azam, Pakistan’s best batter, fell leg-before to spinner Shakib Al Hasan for 31, having now gone 15 Test innings without a half-century.
The first day’s play on Friday was washed out due to rain but Pakistan shone with solid batting in the first session.
Masood, under pressure after scores of six and 14 in the first Test, hit two boundaries before he fell leg-before to Mehidy in the third over after the lunch break.
Fellow left-hander Ayub was more aggressive, hitting two sixes and four boundaries before he was stumped by wicketkeeper Liton Das off Mehidy.
Taskin, brought in for the unfit Shoriful Islam as Bangladesh’s only change, bowled Abdullah Shafique for nought off the sixth ball of the match.
Bangladesh’s 10-wicket win in the first Test, also in Rawalpindi, was their first over Pakistan in 14 attempts.
Pakistan made two changes from the first Test, resting spearheads Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah to bring in pace bowler Hamza and spinner Abrar Ahmed.
The two-match series is part of the World Test Championship, with Pakistan now ranked eighth and Bangladesh seventh in the nine-team table.
Mehidy’s five wickets give Bangladesh second Test edge over Pakistan
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Mehidy’s five wickets give Bangladesh second Test edge over Pakistan
- The 26-year-old recorded his 10th five-wicket haul in Tests to cap a good day for the tourists
- The series is part of World Test Championship, with Pakistan ranked 8th and Bangladesh 7th
Liverpool rocked by last-gasp defeat at Wolves
- Liverpool’s first defeat in five games in all competitions will raise fresh questions about Slot’s Anfield future
LONDON: Liverpool suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolves as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the Premier League’s bottom club on Tuesday.
Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux.
Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November.
But Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool.
It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017.
Liverpool have conceded 14 goals in the last 15 minutes of the second half, with only Newcastle shipping more in the same period in the Premier League.
The Reds remain fifth but their hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League have been hurt by a defeat that means sixth-placed Chelsea will go above them if they beat Aston Villa on Wednesday.
Liverpool’s first defeat in five games in all competitions will raise fresh questions about Slot’s Anfield future.
This was the first of Liverpool’s two trips to Molineux in the space of four days, with an immediate chance for revenge in the FA Cup fifth round on Friday.
Slot this week said he no longer finds Premier League matches a “joy to watch” due to the rise in set-piece goals, and Liverpool supporters took no pleasure from this dismal performance.
Wolves and Liverpool fans joined in a sustained round of applause on 18 minutes in memory of Diogo Jota, who wore that shirt number during his time at Molineux before joining the Reds.
Portugal forward Jota died in a car crash in Spain last year.
Crest-fallen Slot
That emotional tribute seemed to suck the energy from both teams in a scrappy first half.
Liverpool were punished for their lethargy in the 78th minute.
Tolu Arokodare got away with a nudge on Virgil van Dijk to win the ball before playing a superb pass to Rodrigo Gomes, who held off Ibrahima Konate and guided a clinical finish past Alisson Becker.
Liverpool finally awoke from their slumber after that shock, grabbing an equalizer in the 83rd minute with a helping hand from Wolves.
Wolves midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde was guilty of a woeful pass that Salah intercepted, racing into the area for a shot that eluded Jose Sa’s weak attempted save.
Salah has scored just eight goals — five in the league — during a turbulent season.
Liverpool were still creaky at the back and Andre pounced on Alisson’s poor clearance four minutes to steal the points in stoppage-time.
Andre’s powerful strike deflected off Liverpool defender Joe Gomez and looped over the wrong-footed Alisson as Wolves boss Rob Edwards sprinted down the touchline in a wild celebration while Slot looked on crestfallen.
Wolves are 11 points from safety with eight games left and relegation remains almost certain despite this memorable victory.
Everton ended their dismal home form and pushed Burnley closer to relegation with a 2-0 win at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Buoyed by their 3-2 win at Newcastle last weekend, Everton dispatched second-bottom Burnley with their first win in eight home league matches.
Former Burnley defender James Tarkowski put Everton in front with a powerful header from James Garner’s 32nd minute free-kick.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall doubled Everton’s advantage on the hour taking Iliman Ndiaye’s pass and clipping a composed finish past Martin Dubravka from six yards.
Everton remain in contention for a European berth, while Burnley are eight points from safety with just nine games left.
Habib Diarra’s penalty fired Sunderland to a 1-0 victory against Leeds on their first Premier League visit to Elland Road since 2002.
Bournemouth and Brentford shared a goalless draw at the Vitality Stadium that did little to improve either side’s hopes of qualifying for Europe.
