Bangladesh 264 (Shadman 64, Seales 4-5, Shamar 3-49) and 268 (Jaker 91, Shadman 46, Mehidy 42, Roach 3-36) won West Indies 146 (Carty 40, Brathwaite 39, Rana 5-61, Mahmud 2-19) and 185 (Hodge 55, Brathwaite 43, Taijul 5-50, Mahmud 2-20) for 101 runs
Rana took his first five-wicket Test haul in the second innings, helping to bowl out the West Indies for 146.
Bangladesh had scored only 164 in their first innings, but their resurgence in the second innings was also notable. This came courtesy of Jaker, who hit five sixes and eight fours in a counter-attacking 91. Jaker scored 62 of Bangladesh’s 75 runs in the morning session on the fourth day.
On the fourth morning, Jaker held the key for Bangladesh to increase their lead from 211. It did not start well for him, when Alzarri Joseph hit him with the top of his helmet. Bangladesh physio Bayezid Islam Khan took a bit of time to set Jaker straight, with the BCB wary of his concussion history.
The situation worsened when Bangladesh lost consecutive wickets.
Taijul overcame a short ball for 14, after he and Jaker added 34 runs for the sixth wicket. Mominul Haque completed his second pair of Tests when he fell off his fourth ball. He looked visibly ill as he walked away, with his Bangladeshi tail now exposed.
With his back to the wall, Jaker chased down the West Indies attack. He hooked Kemar Roach over wicketkeeper Joshua Da Silva for a boundary. Jaker then clocked a shot from Alzarri for his first six, taking him to his third consecutive fifty in his first three Tests. He is only the second Bangladeshi player with this feat after Zakir Hasan.
Jaker went on a roll in the next two balls. He flayed a short ball to get a four over the slips, and then followed up with a hooked six. Jaker bowled Roach long on in the next over, but fought back with two more wickets. Roach removed Mahmud and Taskin in consecutive overs.
Jaker, however, had another burst of limits in him. He smashed Shamar Joseph for two fours in an over, both pulling shots, before bowling Roach for his fourth six, straight down the ground. His fifth six was from Shamar, bowled over midwicket, before falling to a deep catch later in the over.
Taijul went to work as early as the fifth over when he had Mikyle Louis entangled. Trying to drive the ball, Louis pushed it onto his front foot, and Shahadat Hossain claimed a diving catch at leading short leg.
Feeling the need to seize the momentum, Brathwaite went after the Bangladesh bowling. He had already drawn a boundary with a square cut, but after the lunch break he led Mahmud through the blankets. He bowled Taijul long on for a six, but Keacy Carty couldn’t put away the bowlers at the other end.
Taskin caught Carty behind for 14, after a build-up of dot balls, before Taijul accounted for Brathwaite’s big. He troubled the West Indies captain several times, before one turned and hit the shoulder of Brathwaite’s bat. Mahmudul Hasan Joy ran to his right to avoid a slip and complete a catch. Taijul then got one to bowl in a bad spell and spin backwards through Alick Athanaze’s gaping gap between bat and pad. Athanaze, who attempted an expansive drive, looked confused about his approach in his six-ball stay.
All the while, Hodge maintained his form and looked classy while hitting regular boundaries. He slapped Rana and clipped Taskin in consecutive overs. He hit Mehidy for two fours in an over, before facing Taijul before tea.
West Indies began the third session on a happy note. Hodge reached his fifty with the first ball after the break, but soon after he also fell. Hodge played a delivery from Taijul that stayed very low, trapping him lbw. Keshav Maharaj and Shoaib Bashir also brought it out in a similar manner earlier.
Taskin then cleaned up Justin Greaves with one that also stayed a little low, but the batsman made no effort to get low enough to receive the ball. Joshua Da Silva’s miserable series ended when Taijul had him lbw, again another West Indies batsman falling lbw to a ball they could have played off the front foot.
When Mehidy brought Mahmud in for a second spell, he made an instant impact. He removed Alzarri and Roach to bring Bangladesh to the brink. Then came the big moment when Rana, who changed the momentum of the game with his five for in the first innings, removed Shamar with a yorker to seal the hard-fought victory.
