Mehedi five-for on debut headlines seesaw first day
Mehedi Hasan became the youngest Bangladesh player to take a five-wicket haul on Test debut as the home side left England in a spot of bother after the first day of thefirst Test in Chittagong Thursday (October 20).
At stumps, England was 258 for 7 with Chris Woakes (36) and Adil Rashid (five) in the middle. Moeen Ali (68) and Jonny Bairstow (52) made fighting half-centuries to shore up theEnglish innings while Mehedi (5-64), the teenaged off-spinner, and Shakib Al Hasan (2-46) did all the damage with the ball.
It was a fairly dramatic, acton-packed start to the Test series with Bangladesh and England punching alternately as the momentum kept changing hands. After opting to bat, England was reduced to 21 for 3 before Moeen led a recovery, first with Joe Root (40) and then with Bairstow.
Moeen survived as many as five reviews. He was given out lbw three times, but all decisions were all overturned in England’s favour. Moeen was given out on 17 off Shakib before lunch – and then twice more on the same score in the first over after the break off the same bowler – but survived to lead England’s resistance.
Mehedi and Shakib unleashed a spin barrage on a pitch offering plenty of turn from the very start, leaving England tottering at 21 for 3, but Moeen and Root fought back with some positive batting.
Root looked in good touch but their 62-run stand for the fourth wicket was broken when Mehedi forced the No. 3 bat to edge to slip.
Shakib then bowled Ben Stokes (18) for his second wicket with one that turned big, but Bairstow stood firm to give Moeen company as England fought back again to head into tea at 173 for 5.
But just when the two seemed in control, Mehedi struck in the final session to give Bangladesh the edge. He first had Moeen edging to Mushfiqur Rahim behind the stmps for a smart catch and then reached his landmark by bowling Bairstow, the second new ball skidding past the bat.
Woakes and Rashid then took England to stumps without further losses.
Earlier, in the opening session, Mehedi bowled Ben Duckett for 14 before trapping Gary Ballance for one. Shakib removed Alastair Cook for just four in a disappointing start for the skipper as he became England's most-capped player with 134 Tests.
Mehedi opened the attack for Bangladesh, and beat Duckett on several occasions before he spun one beautifully to hit the middle stump as the England debutant played down the wrong line.
Three balls later Cook was also gone, attempting a sweep off Shakib only for the ball to hit him on the forearm and then the body before dropping on to the stumps. Ballance was initially given not out to an lbw shout, but Bangladesh reviewed the decision in its favour.
Apart from Mehedi, Bangladesh also handed Test debuts to Sabbir Rahman, the top-order batsman, and Kamrul Islam Rabbi, the medium pacer, while England fielded Gareth Batty in a Test match XI after 11 years along with sending Duckett in as Cook’s latest opening partner.
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