Bangladesh moved within three wickets of a historic Test victory over Pakistan after Mohammad Rizwan and Sajid Khan delayed the hosts on the fifth morning in Sylhet.
Heavy overnight rain pushed the start back by 15 minutes, but play resumed at 10:15am after an inspection at Sylhet International Cricket Stadium. Pakistan resumed on 319-7, still needing 119 runs to chase down Bangladesh’s target.
Rizwan continued Pakistan’s resistance with calm shot selection against both pace and spin. Sajid attacked early in the morning session and the pair added 25 runs in the first four overs of the day. Pakistan reached 341-7 after 90 overs, leaving the visitors 94 runs short of victory.
Rizwan remained unbeaten on 88 while Sajid stood firm on 18. Bangladesh struggled to find movement with the new morning ball and failed to create consistent pressure in the opening exchanges.
The hosts still hold control of the Test after dominating long periods of the match. Taijul Islam drove Bangladesh towards victory late on Tuesday when he broke Pakistan’s 134-run stand between Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha. The left-arm spinner bowled more than a third of the overs during the day and removed two key wickets in the final session.
Bangladesh now stand on the verge of a fourth straight Test victory against Pakistan. The team had already won twice in Rawalpindi before taking control in Sylhet. Bangladesh have never won four consecutive Tests against the same opponent.
A win would also lift Najmul Hossain Shanto’s side to fifth in the ICC World Test Championship standings, above both India and England for the time being.
Overcast skies remained over Sylhet on Wednesday morning, but forecasts suggested little chance of further rain interruptions later in the day.
