PAK vs BAN | Nahid-Hasan rip through fragile Pakistan as Tigers inch closer to historic whitewash

Gantavya Adukia

ByGantavya Adukia, SportsCafe Editor

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Bangladesh stand on the brink of their fourth whitewash in Test history on the back of a dominant Day 4 in Rawalpindi as Pakistan crumbled. Hasan Mahmud took a maiden Test fifer and Nahid Rana scalped four before Zakir Hasan blazed a quick 30 to take the Tigers within 143 runs of history.

‌Brief score: BAN 262 & 42/0 [Zakir 31*, Shadman 9*; Abrar 0/5] need 143 runs to defeat PAK 274 & 172 [Salman 47, Rizwan 43; Mahmud 5/43] 

Resuming from an overnight score of 9/2, Pakistan skipper Shan Masood joined the incumbent batter Saim Ayub in the middle to begin Day 4. The pair capitalized on the lack of swing on offer and began flamboyantly, stroking six boundaries within the first half hour of play. However, Saim once again threw away the good start with a loose drive off Taskin Ahmed in the 13th over that was caught exceptionally by Najmul Hossain Shanto low to his left at extra cover. The Bangla skipper took advantage of the break in momentum to bring Nahid Rana into the attack, hoping to trouble the hosts with raw pace on an otherwise flat track. The move paid off brilliantly as the quick had Masood, Babar Azam, and Saud Shakeel caught behind the stumps in successive overs. Rana even extracted the outside edge off Mohammad Rizwan on the very first ball but Shadman Islam failed to hold onto a routine catch in the cordon. The wicket-keeper batter grasped the lifeline with both hands, despite a blow to the head from Rana, to form a stable partnership with Salman Agha and take the team to Lunch at 117/6 with the partnership reading 26.

Upon resumption, Shanto handed the ball to Hasan Mahmud after a couple of overs from Rana, and the right-arm quick instantly repaid the faith by having Rizwan nick behind on 43 and then dispatching Mohammad Ali for a golden duck. Salman tried to farm strike thereafter but Rana made light work of Abrar as soon as he got the opportunity, forcing the all-rounder to be even more strict with strike rotation. He began connecting his boundary efforts at an increasing frequency and had taken the team total to 172 when Hasan wrapped up a five-wicket haul by getting Mir Hamza caught at slip to set the Tigers a target of 185.

By the time the Bangladesh openers walked out, there was a canopy of clouds looming large over the ground. Zakir Hasan thus made intentions clear early by launching Khurram Shazad's third ball for a maximum over fine leg, and repeated the feat in the final over before Tea to head into the break unbeaten on 27 off 21, with the team on 37/0 after six overs. However, only one over was possible in the final session before bad light forced early stumps.

Real deal

Form drop

Tough run

Good pace

Back to back

Fantastic spell

Historic

Transformation

Deserving it

On the top

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