Bangladesh won the one-off Test against Ireland by seven wickets in Dhaka’s Mirpur on the fourth day Friday, with more than four sessions to spare.
In the fourth innings, Bangladesh needed 138 runs to win, a target they reached with the loss of three wickets. Mushfiqur Rahim, who scored 126 in the first innings, remained unbeaten on 51.
Earlier, Bangladesh had lost eight of their last nine Tests. Their last Test win came last year against New Zealand in Mount Maunganui where Ebadot Hossain delivered an outstanding bowling performance.
Although Ireland batted grittily, Bangladesh ultimately emerged victorious. The visitors lost four quick wickets for 13 runs in their second innings. However, they made a strong comeback, thanks to the century of wicketkeeper-batter Lorcan Tucker and 72 of Andy McBrine.
In reply to Ireland’s first innings score of 214, Bangladesh posted 369, securing a 155-run lead. Taijul Islam took five wickets for the hosts, while McBrine took six wickets for Ireland.
Ireland not only chased down 155 runs but also set a target of 138 runs for the hosts.
Litton Das scored 23 off 19 balls to give Bangladesh a fluent start. Although Najmul Hossain Shanto fell quickly and Tamim Iqbal perished when the Tigers were 33 runs away from the win, Mushfiqur and Mominul Haque sealed the victory for their team. Mark Adair, Ben White, and McBrine took one wicket each for Ireland.
“It wasn’t enough in the end,” said Andrew Balbirnie, Ireland captain, after the match. “We showed a lot of grit. We all really enjoyed playing Test cricket again, you have to show a lot of fight, which we did.”
This was only the fourth Test for Ireland, who had previously lost the three Tests they played.
Mushfiqur was named the player of the match for his century and fifty. He praised the bowlers of Bangladesh for their efforts on the track which was not very bowling-friendly. Bangladesh’s next assignment is a three-match ODI series against Ireland in England next month, which is part of the inaugural 2020-2023 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League. All three ODIs will be played at the County Ground, Chelmsford, in England.
