Mahmudullah: 'Everyone gets nervous in the nineties'

It took Mahmudullah 39 deliveries to move from 90 to 100, and he had to work hard to keep his calm. "Everyone gets nervous in the nineties," he said. "There were several times when I thought that I would go after the bowler but Taijul (Islam) told me to take my time as I am batting well."

Mahmudullah came out on day two unbeaten on 34, before sharing stands of 111 with Shakib Al Hasan and 92 with Liton Das. After a difficult start to the day, Shakib and Mahmudullah's stoicism was rewarded and things got slightly easier as the ball wore older.

"The ball wasn’t coming on to the bat. When Shakib and I were batting on the first day, we had to work hard. I think we hit only a couple of boundaries. I wanted to be positive and take minimum risks," he said.

Das returned to the Bangladesh line-up in a less familiar role at number eight, as opposed to his usual position as an opener, and he accumulated runs swiftly and effectively for his 62-ball 54. "Liton batted well, having returned to the side. I think this style suits him well.

"I was also quite positive. The new ball was easier to bat against, which gave us more scoring options. It starts reducing as the ball gets older. We were looking to utilize the bad balls," he added.

After finally surrendering his wicket for 136 to Jomel Warrican and seeing his side's innings wrapped up, Bangladesh had the evening session to go at the Windies. They got off to an absolute ripper of a start, Mehidy Hasan taking three scalps and Shakib two, as the tourists stooped to 29/5.

Shane Dowrich and Shimron Hetmyer managed to drag their side to 75/5 at the close of play, but the hosts still look likely to secure a rare series win. If they do, Mahmudullah's patience will have been right at the heart of their success.