At the end of day two of the Jamaica Test, West Indies are in a strong position, with Bangladesh fighting back through their bowlers after a disappointing batting collapse. The scorecard can sometimes be misleading, and this was certainly the case for West Indies. Despite losing only one wicket, one has to wonder how many more they could have lost. The Bangladesh bowlers had them under pressure for long periods, with numerous close calls and near misses. The sound of the ball narrowly missing the bat was heard several times from behind the stumps, with Liton Kumar Das making those familiar ‘aha’ and ‘ooh’ sounds. However, there are no rewards for such near-misses, and in the end, the day was a disappointing one for Bangladesh.
The frustration began with the batting. After some initial hope, the batting crumbled once again. While the bowlers gave their best, they couldn’t pick up enough wickets to capitalize on their efforts. By the end of day two, West Indies were firmly in control.
Bangladesh were bowled out for 164 in their first innings. West Indies, after 37 overs of batting, ended the day on 70/1.
On a slow pitch, the two teams combined for only 165 runs in 78.5 overs throughout the day.
The morning session was dominated by Shamarh Brooks, whose brilliant spell shattered Bangladesh’s batting. Jaden Seales followed up with an outstanding performance, keeping Bangladesh under constant pressure. Seales’ figures were remarkable: 15.5-10-5-4. This is the most economical bowling performance in Test history for a bowler who has bowled at least 15 overs in an innings.
The wicket at Sabina Park offered movement all day. Following the path set by Joseph and Seales, Bangladesh’s pacers also bowled brilliantly, especially Naheed Rana, who returned to the XI and consistently clocked speeds over 150 km/h. Taijul Islam followed suit with impeccable line and length, troubling the West Indies batsmen with turn. Despite their excellent efforts, Bangladesh could only manage to take one wicket.
Due to a wet pitch on the first day, only 30 overs were possible. Bangladesh resumed their innings on the second day with 69/2, but they soon collapsed, losing 8 wickets for just 40 runs. The first collapse came when they lost 4 wickets for just 15 runs. Another followed shortly after, with the final 4 wickets falling for just 25 runs.
Mominul Haque and Taijul Islam fought back with determined and patient batting, adding 41 runs in 116 balls.
The partnership that began between Shadman Islam and Shahadat Hossain continued from the previous day, with both batsmen starting the day cautiously. Though they didn’t score freely, they pushed the partnership forward. Eventually, Shamarh Joseph broke their resistance with a superb delivery, getting Shahadat out for 22 runs.
After breaking the partnership, West Indies quickly dismissed Liton Kumar Das and Zakir Ali with loose shots. Just after the drinks break, Joseph dealt another big blow, dismissing Shadman Islam for 64 runs, ending his 207-minute stay at the crease.
Bangladesh was now 98/6, but Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam stood firm, showing grit and determination. They thwarted West Indies’ bowling attack for almost 20 overs. However, after lunch, Taijul was dismissed by Alzarri Joseph for 16 runs off 66 balls, and Miraz was dismissed by Seales after a short-pulled catch for 36 runs from 75 balls.
West Indies’ openers faced pressure from Bangladesh’s bowlers, especially Hasan Mahmud and Taskin Ahmed, who put them on the back foot early on. Naheed Rana also troubled Mikhail Louis with his pace, eventually getting him out for just 12 runs.
From there, Kraigg Brathwaite and Casey Cartie faced a tough time against Bangladesh’s bowling attack. Both survived several close calls, with Brathwaite even offering a chance to Taijul Islam, who couldn’t hold onto a difficult catch.
Despite being uncomfortable throughout, the pair managed to stay put, adding 45 runs in 24 overs.
Brathwaite, who reached 33* off 115 balls, became the first Caribbean batsman to reach 1000 Test runs against Bangladesh. Cartie, after 60 balls, remained unbeaten on 19 runs.
Brief Scorecard:
Bangladesh 1st Innings: 164 all out (previous day 69/2)
(Sadman 64, Shahadat 22, Liton 1, Zakir 1, Miraz 36, Taijul 16, Taskin 8, Hasan 5*, Naheed 0)
(Roach 15-2-45-2, Seales 15.5-10-5-4, Shamar Joseph 15-3-49-3, Alzarri Joseph 14-3-29-1, Graves 7-2-14-0, Hodge 4-0-14-0, Brathwaite 1-0-1-0)
West Indies 1st Innings: 70/1 in 37 overs
(Brathwaite 33*, Louis 12, Cartie 19*; Hasan 7-2-16-0, Taskin 8-5-11-0, Naheed 9-0-28-1, Taijul 10-7-7-0, Miraz 3-1-2-0)
