West Indies thrashed Bangladesh by 10 wickets in St Lucia to win the second match of the two-Test series. With this, the hosts won the series 2-0.
In fact, Bangladesh failed to impress with the bat throughout the series. They suffered six ducks in the first innings of the first Test, and in the last innings of the series, they managed to post only 186 runs. Overall, it was yet another poor batting display by Bangladesh that eventually handed WI a Test series that they would love to forget.
“We always knew it was going to be a tough series,” Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan told the broadcaster after the match. “There are a lot of positives to take from this series. We will have time to think now and try to get better in Tests. In Tests, when we travel, most sides don’t do well. We need to be mentally tough.”
Shakib also said that his team needs more time to produce a good performance in the Tests. But he also said that the upcoming white-ball series will be a stage for the Tigers to show their guts.
Like the third day of the St Lucia Test, the fourth day was also hit by intense rain. The first session of the day was completely washed away.
Bangladesh were struggling at 132 for six at the end of day three. They could add only 54 runs to their overnight total with a fifty from Nurul Hasan Shohan. The last three batters who are pacers — Ebadot Hossain, Khaled Ahmed and Shoriful Islam — failed to perform.
Kemar Roach, Alzarri Joseph and Jayden Seales took three wickets each.
With the fifty of Sohan, Bangladesh avoided an innings defeat but the fourth-innings target for the West Indies was small 13 runs that the hosts managed to score in just 2.5 overs without losing any wicket.
Bangladesh were behind the hosts from the first innings of the match when they had scored only 234 runs. The visitors were not able to come out from that downfall.
In reply to Bangladesh’s below-par first innings, the West Indies scored 408 runs — thanks to a century by Kyle Mayers who scored 146 and the West Indies captain, Kraigg Brathwaite, who hit a fifty.
For Bangladesh, Khaled Ahmed bagged five wickets in the first innings — the best bowling display by any Bangladeshi pacer in the West Indies. But his effort went in vain as the batters couldn’t produce a total to keep the fight alive.
“I think the confidence of the guys was high,” Kraigg Brathwaite, the West Indies captain, said after the match. “The planning and execution made me happy. Mayers’ partnership with Blackwood was superb. Bangladesh bowled well. I think there is always room for improvement. We should try to bat over 100 overs almost every time.”
Both the teams will now lock horns in a three-match T20I and three-match ODI series. The T20Is will take place on July 2, 3 and 7, and the ODIs on July 10, 13 and 16.
