Bangladesh recovered twice from precarious positions, 22-3 and 121-5, to reach 327-6 at stumps on day one of the opening Test against South Africa in Johannesburg, anchored by a record-breaking stand between Towhid Hridoy and Litton Das.
Hridoy’s magnificent innings of 137 off 227 deliveries came to an end on the final ball of the day when Marco Jansen trapped him lbw with a full-length delivery that struck just above his boot. Litton, however, walked off unbeaten on 92, just eight runs shy of a century.
Together, the duo forged a 206-run partnership for the sixth wicket, registering Bangladesh’s highest stand for any wicket against the Proteas. Their effort eclipsed the previous record of 138, set by Jaker Ali and Mehidy Hasan Miraz in Mirpur in 2024.
Extending his purple patch after scores of 242 not out and 82 against the West Indies in Sylhet, Hridoy became only the second Bangladeshi batter to score a Test century against South Africa, joining Mahmudul Hasan Joy (137 in Durban in 2022). He brought up the landmark in the final session by guiding Dane Paterson to the deep third boundary.
Showing far greater discipline than the top order, Hridoy and Litton resisted playing away from their bodies, waiting patiently for the ball to come onto the bat. They cashed in heavily against the older, softer ball, taking 19 runs off a single Simon Harmer over, before South Africa claimed the second new ball at the earliest opportunity, paving the way for Jansen’s late strike.
The rescue mission was sparked immediately after Kagiso Rabada had struck off consecutive deliveries just after lunch to reduce the tourists to 121-5.
Earlier in the day, after captain Najmul Hossain Shanto won the toss and elected to bat on a lively pitch, Bangladesh’s top order collapsed against a hostile new-ball burst from Rabada. Debutant opener Mahfijul Islam Robin lasted just a single delivery, edging to gully to become the first Bangladeshi opener and fourth overall after Nazmul Hossain, Abdur Razzak and Nazmul Islam to bag a golden duck in his maiden Test innings.
Mominul Haque soon departed without scoring as well, poking tentatively outside off stump to give a straightforward catch to wicketkeeper Ryan Rickelton. Shanto tried to rebuild alongside Tanzid Hasan, only to be undone by an ambitious drive against a sharp nip-backer from Rabada that breached his defences and sent the off stump cartwheeling.
Tanzid and Hridoy led the initial recovery, bringing up their half-century stand in 74 balls. The left-handed opener reached his second Test fifty off 79 deliveries in the final over before lunch, sweeping Harmer to the ropes.
Rabada returned after the break, however, to end their 99-run stand. A delivery from a good length cramped Tanzid for space, causing him to chop the ball onto his stumps. On the very next delivery, veteran Mushfiqur Rahim attempted a drive on the up, only to edge the moving ball to Harmer at third slip—handing Rabada his 18th Test five-wicket haul overall, and his fifth against Bangladesh.
