Umar steadies Pakistan in Bangladesh Test

DHAKA: Taufeeq Umar closed in on a second successive half-century to steady Pakistan on the second day of the second and final Test against Bangladesh in Dhaka on Sunday.

The left-handed opener, who scored 61 in the opening Test in Chittagong, was unbeaten on 44 as Pakistan reached 87-1 in their first innings at stumps after bowling out Bangladesh for 338.

Azhar Ali was 26 not out when play was called off due to bad light.

Pakistan lost in-form Mohammad Hafeez before Umar and Azhar put on 64 runs for the unbroken second-wicket stand, with Umar hitting eight fours in his 79-ball knock so far.

Bangladesh paceman Nazmul Hossain, returning to the Test side after seven years, struck with his first delivery when he had Hafeez caught behind for only 14, a stark contrast to the opener’s 143 in the last Test.

Bangladesh, resuming at 234-5, earlier lost well-set Shakib Al Hasan (144) and skipper Mushfiqur Rahim (40) off successive balls before being bowled out in the afternoon session.

The hosts were strongly placed at 305-5 before losing their last five wickets for 33, with Shakib’s dismissal starting the slide.

Shakib was run out following a mix-up with his skipper as Umar hit the stumps at the non-striker’s end from mid-wicket, while Rahim was caught down the leg-side by wicket-keeper Adnan Akmal off paceman Umar Gul.

Left-handed Shakib and Rahim batted comfortably against Pakistan’s pace-spin combination, adding 82 runs for the sixth wicket.

Fast bowlers Gul and Aizaz Cheema each took three wickets, while off-spinner Saeed Ajmal finished with 2-64.

Former captain Shakib, 108 overnight, cracked 15 fours in a superb 242-ball knock for his highest score in any form of international cricket, while Rahim hit one six and six fours in his 102-ball innings.

Shahadat Hossain, dropped on five by Abdur Rehman at deep mid-wicket off Ajmal, remained unbeaten on 21 with the help of one six and two fours.

Pakistan went wicketless in the morning session despite taking the second new ball immediately it was available as Shakib and Rahim helped their team add 51 runs to their overnight total after a delayed start due to fog.

Rahim, five not out overnight, played some handsome shots in the morning as he slog-swept Ajmal over mid-wicket for the first six of the match and then cut left-arm spinner Rehman for a four in the next over.

Pakistan lead 1-0 in the series after winning the opening Test by an innings and 184 runs.

Pakistan eye win after Younis double ton

Younis, 96 overnight, reached his hundred in the opening over when he flicked paceman Shahadat Hossain for a four. -Photo by AFP

CHITTAGONG: Younis Khan cracked an unbeaten double-century and Asad Shafiq made his maiden international hundred as Pakistan closed in on victory in the first Test against Bangladesh on Sunday.

Younis smashed a solid 200 not out and Shafiq an impressive 104 as Pakistan posted 594-5 declared in their first innings in reply to Bangladesh’s 135 in Chittagong.

The hosts faltered against spin before reaching 134-4 in their second innings at stumps, with debutant Mohammed Nazimuddin and Shakib Al Hasan both unbeaten on 41, still trailing by 325 runs.

“I’m very happy with the double-century and credit goes to the coaches and management of Pakistan’s team. I dedicate this double-hundred to my family,”said Younis.

Off-spinner Mohammad Hafeez, who was pressed into Pakistan’s attack after only five overs, struck with his fifth delivery after the tea break when he bowled opener Tamim Iqbal for 15.

Bangladesh lost three wickets in the space of six runs after Nazimuddin and Shahriar Nafees added 50 for the second wicket, with off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman and paceman Aizaz Cheema doing the damage.

Nafees made 28 and Nasir Hossain three while Mohammad Ashraful failed to open his account before Nazimuddin and Shakib added 54 for the unbroken fifth-stand stand to steady the innings.

“Our batting has not been up to the expectations, maybe the confidence is a bit low at the moment. But still there was some positive batting from Shakib and Nazimuddin,” said Bangladeshi left-arm spinner Elias Sunny.

Pakistan declared in the afternoon session immediately after Younis turned left-arm spinner Shakib to square-leg for two runs to complete his double-century, his third score of 200 or more in 72 Tests.

Younis dominated the Bangladeshi attack with rich strokeplay, hitting three sixes and 18 fours in his 290-ball knock.

Bangladesh continued to struggle for success as they took more than a session to get their lone wicket, but not before Younis and Shafiq had put on 259 for the fifth wicket.

“I knew I’ll get my first hundred because I’m working hard. So after I got it today, it’s like a dream come true,” said Shafiq.

“I just wanted to play positive and straight as much as possible. It was a pleasure to bat with Younis because he kept correcting me when I played wrong.”

Sunny broke the stand when he dismissed 25-year-old Shafiq, who cracked two sixes and nine fours in his 235-ball innings before being caught by Nafees at long-off while going for a big shot.

Younis, 96 overnight, reached his 19th Test hundred in the opening over when he flicked paceman Shahadat Hossain for four. He was later caught off a Rubel Hossain no-ball by Sunny at deep square-leg on 138.

Sunny finished with 3-123, while off-spinner Mohammad Mahmudullah and Shahadat took one wicket each.

Hafeez, Younis take Pakistan to big lead

Hafeez put Pakistan on course for a big total with a 164-run stand for the opening wicket with left-handed Taufeeq Umar, who scored 61 for his 12th Test half-century. -Photo by AFP

CHITTAGONG: Opener Mohammad Hafeez cracked a career-best 143 and Younis Khan an impressive 96 not out on Saturday to put Pakistan in a commanding position in the opening Test against Bangladesh.

Hafeez hit 14 fours in his fourth Test hundred as Pakistan posted 415-4 in their first innings at stumps on the second day in reply to Bangladesh’s 135, to gain a 280-run lead with six wickets in hand.

Younis, playing his 72nd Test, completed 6,000 runs when he lofted left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan for a straight six in the last session. He also hit 10 fours in his 155-ball knock.

Asad Shafiq, who put on 104 for the unbroken fifth-wicket stand with Younis, was 40 not out with two sixes to his name as the tourists plundered 283 runs in the day after resuming at 132 for no loss.

Hafeez, whose previous best was 119 against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo this year, was unlucky to be adjudged leg-before off left-arm spinner Elias Sunny, as TV replays suggested he inside-edged the delivery on to his pad.

It was a frustrating day for Bangladesh, who not only struggled to take wickets on an easy-paced track but also dropped a couple of catches.

The hosts took the second new ball immediately after it was due and Shahadat Hossain had a chance to dismiss Younis on 15, but Sunny dropped the catch at deep square-leg.

Bangladesh also let off skipper Misbah-ul-Haq on five when the batsman edged paceman Rubel Hossain, but Shahriar Nafees failed to hold on at second slip.

Sunny, who made a seven-wicket Test debut at this venue against the West Indies in October, then trapped Misbah (20) leg-before when the batsman attempted to sweep a full-toss.

Hafeez earlier put Pakistan in a strong position when he added 164 for the opening wicket with left-handed Taufeeq Umar (61) and 56 for the second wicket with Azhar Ali (26).

Hafeez, 74 overnight, reached his century in the morning when he drove off-spinner Mohammad Mahmudullah through the covers for a four.

Bangladesh broke the opening-wicket stand when Mahmudullah trapped Umar leg-before after the batsman had added eight runs to his overnight score of 53.

Umar’s 164-ball knock contained eight fours.

Shahadat was the other wicket-taker, having Azhar caught by wicket-keeper and captain Mushfiqur Rahim in the afternoon.

Hafeez, Umar put Pakistan on top

CHITTAGONG: Mohammad Hafeez and Taufeeq Umar cracked unbeaten half-centuries to put Pakistan in command after Bangladesh crashed to 135 on the opening day of the first Test on Friday.

Pakistan made a strong reply to reach 132 for no loss in their first innings at stumps, with Hafeez hitting nine fours in his 74 not out and Umar seven boundaries in his unbeaten 53.

Umar gave a chance in the last over of the day bowled by left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan, but Shahadat Hossain failed to hold on to the ball at mid-on.

Left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman earlier finished with 3-9 and off-spinner Saeed Ajmal with 3-40 as Bangladesh were dismissed in just 51.2 overs after being put in to bat in Chittagong.

Pacemen Aizaz Cheema and Umar Gul also gave a good account of themsleves as they wrecked the hosts’ top order before finishing with two wickets each.

Bangladesh also had their shot-selection to blame for their dismal batting display against Pakistan’s pace-spin combination as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

Lower-order batsman Nasir Hossain top-scored with 41 with the help of one six and seven fours before being the last man out.

Debutant opener Mohammed Nazimuddin also offered some resistance as he batted more than a session for his 79-ball 31 with the help of five fours before he was caught by Hafeez in the slips off Gul.

Mohammad Mahmudullah (18) was the other batsman to reach double-figures.

Pakistan, playing their first Test in Bangladesh in almost a decade, put the hosts in deep trouble in the morning when they took five wickets for 47 runs in the opening 23 overs.

Cheema rocked Bangladesh with two quick wickets while Gul, Ajmal and Rehman each took one wicket after the tourists had won the toss and elected to field.

Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul-Haq opened the attack with off-spinner Hafeez, but had to rely on his fast bowlers to jolt the hosts on an easy-paced track.

Hafeez gave away nine runs, including a six over long-off by opener Tamim Iqbal, in his opening three overs before being replaced by Cheema who struck with his fourth delivery.

Cheema had Tamim (nine) caught behind and then had Shahriar Nafees caught by Younis Khan at second slip for no score in his next over.

Bangladesh continued to struggle against pace as they soon lost Mohammad Ashraful, caught behind off Gul after making just one run.

Skipper Mushfiqur Rahim (four) was trapped leg-before in Ajmal’s first over, while former captain Shakib Al Hasan (eight) was caught at square-leg by Hafeez while sweeping Rehman.

Bangladesh to probe stoning incident

Home fans in Chittagong for the third one-day international were angry with South Africa umpire Johan Cloete.

CHITTAGONG: The Bangladesh Cricket Board are to carry out an investigation after the car carrying match officials following Tuesday’s defeat by Pakistan was alleged to have been stoned.

Home fans in Chittagong for the third one-day international were angry with South Africa umpire Johan Cloete after he decided Bangladesh all-rounder Farhad Reza was out leg before wicket off the bowling of spinner Saeed Ajmal.

Fans booed when the replay of the incident was shown on the giant screen at the ground as it appeared Reza had managed to get his bat to the ball first.

After Reza’s dismissal, Bangladesh then lost their last three wickets for two runs to be bowled out for 119 and a 58-run defeat to lose the series 3-0.

“An incident happened and the window of the car carrying the match officials broke,” Mesbahuddin Serniabat, the security chief of the Bangladesh Cricket Board told reporters on Wednesday.

“But we are not fully convinced if it is because of stoning. It may be just an accident. We are investigating the matter,” he said, adding that no one was hurt in the incident.

This is second reported incident of stoning in a year at a cricket match in Bangladesh after the West Indies team bus was pelted after they bowled out Bangladesh for 58 runs during the World Cup in March.

Younis Khan expects tough test from Bangladesh

Misbah-ul-Haq (L) inspects the pitch during a training session at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chittagong.

CHITTAGONG: Pakistan will begin their first Test series in Bangladesh for almost a decade in Chittagong on Friday determined to extend their 100 percent winning record against the hosts.

The tourists, who beat Sri Lanka in all formats of the game in the United Arab Emirates last month, have already asserted their supremacy over Bangladesh by making a 3-0 clean sweep of the one-day series.

Pakistan played their lone Test series in Bangladesh in January 2002, winning both matches in Dhaka and Chittagong by an innings under the captaincy of Waqar Younis.

Pakistan have won all of their six Tests against Bangladesh since 2001, the closest match being in Multan in 2003 when they triumphed by one wicket following Inzamam-ul-Haq’s match-winning unbeaten century.

The tourists, now led by reliable batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, were not seriously tested in the one-dayers against the hosts after putting in impressive performances with both bat and ball.

But senior Pakistani batsman Younis Khan said Thursday he expected a tough fight from Bangladesh in the Tests.

“When we play Tests we expect a Test-level competition,” he said.

“They struggled in the limited-overs matches, but Test cricket is a different ball game.

“If they stick to their goals, they will give us tough competition. It will not be easy for us since Bangladesh are playing in home conditions.”

Bangladesh strengthened their brittle batting by including former captain and middle-order batsman Mohammad Ashraful in the 15-man squad.

Ashraful, with 2,418 runs in 56 Tests, will look to justify his recall after being dropped for the home series against the West Indies in October-November.

“During the one-dayers, our fielders and bowlers did a good job, so it’s time our batsmen put up a good performance,” said Bangladesh’s top-order batsman Shahriar Nafees.

“The focus now is on the Test series. We want to come back strongly and play our best cricket.”

Bangladesh will rely on their spin attack led by Shakib Al Hasan and Elias Sunny to keep pressure on the Pakistani batting line-up at the traditionally spin-friendly venue in Chittagong.

Shakib is the key all-rounder in the side with 1,421 runs and 89 wickets in 24 Tests, while Sunny made an impressive seven-wicket Test debut at this venue against the West Indies two months ago.

Bangladesh will seek to improve their dismal run since gaining Test status in 2000, losing 61 of their 71 matches, winning just three with seven drawn.

The second and final Test will be played in Dhaka from December 17.

Bangladesh (from): Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Mohammad Mahmudullah, Tamim Iqbal, Shahriar Nafees, Mohammad Ashraful, Shakib Al Hasan, Naeem Islam, Nasir Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Nazmul Hossain, Elias Sunny, Shahadat Hossain, Suhrawadi Shuvo, Robiul Islam, Mohammed Nazimuddin.

Pakistan (from): Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Younis Khan, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Shoaib Malik, Adnan Akmal, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Umar Gul, Mohammad Talha, Aizaz Cheema, Mohammad Khalil.

Sehwag goes past Sachin as India plunder 418

Sehwag's 15th ODI century was his first as captain

INDORE: Virender Sehwag smashed the highest individual score in one-day internationals on Thursday, hitting 219 as India piled on 418-5 in the fourth match of the series against the West Indies.

The Delhi opener plundered 25 boundaries and seven sixes during his 149-ball blitz, joining compatriot Sachin Tendulkar as the only batsmen in history to score double-centuries in the 50-over format.

Sehwag moved past Tendulkar’s 200 not out — against South Africa in Gwalior last year — in the 44th over when, on 197, he cut Andre Russell to the point fence.

He was finally dismissed in the 47th over when he was caught in the deep off Kieron Pollard and was clapped off the field by the entire West Indies team and some 30,000 jubilant home fans.

Sehwag’s blistering knock helped India notch their highest one-day total, surpassing the 414-7 they made against Sri Lanka in Rajkot in 2009.

It was Sehwag’s 15th three-figure knock in one-day cricket and the first since making 175 against Bangladesh in the opening match of the World Cup in Dhaka in February this year.

Sehwag, who is captaining India in the series in the absence of the rested Mahendra Singh Dhoni, had managed just 46 runs in the previous three matches.

But he found the right conditions to strike form on the run-laden pitch at the Holkar stadium in Indore and lift India towards a decisive 3-1 lead in the series.

Sehwag, who was dropped on 170 by West Indies captain Darren Sammy in the covers, put on 176 for the first wicket with Gautam Gambhir (67) and 140 for the second with Suresh Raina (55).

It was the ideal tune-up for Sehwag as he prepared for the four-Test series in Australia starting later this month.

Left-hander Gambhir, who had scored 16 runs in the series, broke the shackles to hit 11 boundaries in his run-a-ball innings during the rollicking opening stand.

Gambhir, who also heads to Australia next week, was unlucky to be run out in the 23rd over when Sehwag changed his mind about taking a sharp single to the cover region.

The West Indies suffered a blow before the start when star batsman Darren Bravo was ruled out of the must-win game due to a hamstring strain.

Bravo was replaced by Kieran Powell.

India brought in debutant leg-spinner Rahul Sharma in place of fast bowler Umesh Yadav, the only change from the side that lost the third match in Ahmedabad on Monday.