Najmul Hossain Shanto hammered a fluent century as Bangladesh came up with a ruthless cricket to put them on top on the opening day of the one-off Test against Afghanistan at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium Wednesday.
Shanto struck 146 off 175, hitting 23 fours and two sixes to help Bangladesh rack up 362-5, its third highest total on day one.
He added 212-run with opener Mahmudul Hasan Joy for the second wicket, a partnership, which was instrumental in keeping Bangladesh’s nose ahead. Defying the hot and humid weather, Bangladesh scored above 4.5 runs per over, epitomizing their ambition to play attacking brand of cricket.
Joy missed out his ton after being dismissed for 79. At stumps, Mehidy Hasan Miraz was batting on 43 with Mushfiqur on 41 after sharing 72-run for the undefeated sixth wicket stand.
But they started the day with worst possible after being sent to bat first. Afghanistan claimed the wicket in the second over, leaving Bangladesh 6-1 with Pace bowler Nijatullah Masood making him the first Afghan bowler to claim the wicket in the first delivery of debut test when had Zakir Hasan caught by wicket-keeper Afsar Zazai for 1.
The delivery from Masood shaped across Zakir but the umpire remained unmoved. The replays revealed that the ball took the feintest nick off the bat before going through to keeper. By doing so, Masood became the 22nd bowler in the world to achieve the feat.
Shanto counterattacked from the words go as he disrupted Afghans plan shrewdly.
He punished anything short and raised his fourth test fifty off 58 balls, pulling a short delivery off left-arm wrist spinner behind backward square leg for four.
Joy, playing his first test since June last year, was patient compared to his partner as he brought up his third fifty off 102 balls when an overthrow gave him five runs.
Shanto frustrated the Afghan bowlers more to bring up his century off 118 balls and looked untroubled against a lackluster bowling attack.
Rahmat Shah, an occasional legspinner, brought the crucial breakthrough for the side when Joy cut straight to Ibrahim Zadran at slip.
The first two sessions saw Afghanistan taking just two wickets but they pulled the things in the third session as debutant Masood, who claimed 2-67, led the charge
He successfully reviewed one to get the better of Mominul Haque, caught by the wicket-keeper for 15 and then rattled the stump of Najmul with another one that swung sharply. But to his dismay it was a no-ball.
Shanto failed to make the most use of the chance and after adding just three runs, he was dismissed when he chipped straight to deep midwicket after being lured by left-arm spinner Amir Hamza.
On his captaincy debut, Liton Das was undone by the flight of left-arm wrist spinner Zahir Khan, edging it at first slip as Bangladesh slumped to 290-5 from 218-1.
Mushfiqur Rahim and Mehiy Hasan denied Afghanistan to wrestle back to the game, playing with calculative aggression.
