Shakib gives Bangladesh hope of victory after five-wicket morning session – T20 IPL 2024

Lunch Pakistan 448 for 6 dec and 108 for 6 (Rizwan 22*, Shaheen 1*, Shakib 2-24, Mehidy 1-5) trail Bangladesh 565 by nine runs

Bangladesh’s bowlers picked up five wickets in the first session of the last day to push for a rare away Test victory. They rode on the confidence that Mushfiqur Rahim’s 191 drilled into their campaign on Saturday to give them the upper hand with two sessions to go.

Pakistan had already lost Saim Ayub to Shoriful Islam on the fourth evening, and in the morning, Bangladesh’s other bowlers combined to remove five more frontline batters in the space of 26 overs, leaving them still nine behind with just four wickets in hand. The two remaining sessions are set to be extended ones because of the overs lost to rain on the first day.

Pakistan were looking fairly steady on 65 for 2 before they lost a flurry of wickets, including Babar Azam’s dismissal for 22. Saud Shakeel and Agha Salman also bagged ducks.

Babar could have fallen for a duck too – and bagged a pair – had Litton Das held on to the diving catch to his right when Babar edged one on just his second ball early in the day. Babar grew in confidence with some runs and boundaries, but once he fell for 22, Shakeel, Abdullah Shafique and Agha Salman fell to the spinning duo of Shakib Al Hasan and Mehidy Hasan Miraz to leave the hosts in deep trouble.

The 10-over-old ball wasn’t swinging as much in the morning as it did on the previous evening but Shan Masood fell early when he edged one behind off Hasan Mahmud outside off. The on-field umpire didn’t give it out but Bangladesh reviewed, like they did in the first innings, and saw the decision overturned after a spike on UltraEdge, leaving Masood unhappy yet again.

Only two balls later, Babar tickled one behind from Shoriful but Litton couldn’t replicate the diving catch he had taken – although down leg – in the first innings to remove Babar. Surviving the chance, Babar punished some of the loose deliveries that followed for boundaries, while Shafique remained steady at the other end. His footwork, however, didn’t look at its best and fast bowler Nahid Rana cranked up the pace to create an opportunity.

He peppered Babar with short balls that were regularly above 145kmph to push him on the back foot and then pitched one up outside off. Babar couldn’t move his feet enough, and was chopped on for 22. Shakib was stifling Pakistan from the other end with stump-to-stump lines and the pressure led to another wicket in the next over when Shakeel stepped out to negotiate the turn but missed, and was left stumped for a duck.

Full report to follow…

Vishal Dikshit is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo

Source: ESPN Crickinfo

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