Pakistan beats Bangladesh by 8 wickets in the first test

CHITTAGONG: Pakistan Tuesday defeated Bangladesh by eight wickets in the first Test, which was played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. Pakistan stood ready to confidently win the game after opening games scoring Abid Ali and Abdullah Shafique for half a century to build a solid foundation.

Bangladesh's spin magician Taijul Islam caught Abid Ali lbw on 91 runs, while Abdullah Shafique was sacked the same way by Mehidy Hasan at 73. However, a stable partnership between Azhar Ali, who scored 24 goals, and skipper Babar Azam, who scored 13, ensured victory for Pakistan.

After the game, Babar Azam praised pacemakers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hassan Ali for their victorious performances. "Our fast bowlers performed well but we need to improve," he said. "The way Abdullah [Shafique] played is commendable," said Babar Azam, appreciating Abid Ali for having a solid opening score in both innings.

In the stumps on day 4, Pakistan finished 109-0 and only needed 93 runs on the final day. Ali wasn't knocked out at the end of the game at 56, adding to his score of 133 in the first innings, while debutant Shafique went undefeated at 53. "A fourth day is very important in test cricket," said Shafique.

"Our plan today was to keep them as small as possible so that we can easily follow them up. We tried and we succeeded." Fast bowler Shaheen Afridi previously claimed 5-32 to help Pakistan bowle Bangladesh for 157 runs in their second innings, despite wicketkeeper batsman Liton Das scoring a fight of fifty.

Read Also | Abid Ali & Abdullah Shafique write history with successive century stands

Bangladesh went down and out after 39-4 after losing Mushfiqur Rahim in the first over of the day before Liton, who hit hundreds in the first innings, brought the hosts back to seriousness with 59 of 89 balls. Afridi caught Liton leg-ahead and then let Abu Jayed out for a duck to complete his fourth five-wicket Test haul.

The off-spinner Sajid Khan, who finished at 3:33, ended the matter with the posting of Taijul Islam. The hosts got off to a positive start when Mushfiqur hit a limit with the first ball of the morning, bowling from Hasan Ali. But two balls later, he left a delivery that shot back in goal and headed for 16 after Hasan uprooted his stump.