Bangladesh make history by winning Test series against Pakistan

Darwin, 20 May : Chasing a massive target of 437 runs, Pakistan needed to produce a world-record run chase. Mohammad Rizwan kept their hopes alive with his batting, becoming a major concern for Bangladesh on the fourth day and again on the fifth morning of the Sylhet Test.

However, Shariful Islam finally broke his resistance, dismissing Rizwan just six runs short of a century and sealing a memorable victory for Bangladesh. With that wicket, Bangladesh secured the Test match and also clinched the series under captain Najmul Hossain Shanto.

Bangladesh won the second and final Test of the two-match series by 78 runs. This result marked their second consecutive Test series win. Most notably, it was the first time Bangladesh whitewashed Pakistan in Test cricket at home.

On Wednesday morning, Pakistan resumed their innings at 316 for 7, still needing 121 runs to achieve a record-breaking chase. Bangladesh, meanwhile, were aiming to take the remaining three wickets.

Early in the day, Rizwan once again troubled the Bangladesh bowlers. After having already built a crucial partnership with Salman Ali Agha on the previous day, he tried to anchor Pakistan’s innings alongside the tailenders.

He first settled into a 50-run partnership with Sajid Khan. However, Taijul Islam eventually broke the stand with a brilliant delivery that led to Sajid being caught at slip after scoring 28 off 36 balls.

The breakthrough significantly reduced Pakistan’s chances, and soon after, Rizwan also fell. Shariful Islam, introduced into the attack early in the fifth day, claimed his first wicket of the match—and it was the most important one. Rizwan attempted an aggressive shot outside off stump, only to be caught at gully by Mehidy Hasan Miraz. He scored 94 runs off 166 balls, hitting 10 fours.

After Shariful’s breakthrough, Taijul Islam wrapped up the innings by dismissing the last batter. Attempting a big shot off the left-arm spinner, Khurram Shahzad was caught at long-on, ending Pakistan’s innings and confirming Bangladesh’s victory.

Taijul Islam was outstanding throughout the match, taking 6 wickets in the second innings and finishing with a total of 9 wickets in the Test. Nahid Rana picked up 5 wickets across both innings, while Taskin Ahmed and Mehidy Hasan Miraz took two wickets each. Shariful Islam took one.

Earlier, Bangladesh scored 278 in their first innings, while Pakistan managed 232. In their second innings, Bangladesh posted a strong total of 390, setting Pakistan a daunting target.

Mushfiqur Rahim scored a record-breaking century, while Litton Das and Mahmudul Hasan Joy contributed half-centuries. Their disciplined batting effort set up a challenging target that Pakistan ultimately failed to chase.

With this result, Bangladesh have now won four consecutive Test matches against Pakistan. It is also the first time in Bangladesh’s Test history that they have won four straight matches against a single opponent.