Two and a half days lost due to rain and outfield but Rohit Sharma-led India did not break a sweat as they beat Bangladesh by seven wickets at Green Park, Kanpur. The Indian team remained at the top of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 points table as they bowled out Bangladesh in the extended first session and then chased down the target of 95 on a Day 5 pitch comfortably. This was India’s 18th consecutive Test series at home since 2013.
Jaiswal hits another fifty
In the run chase of 95, skipper Rohit hit a boundary in the first over. He was dismissed by off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz on the first ball of the second over. He went for a sweep but found Hasan Mahmud in the deep. Shubman Gill could not do much either and got out lbw to Miraz in his next over.
Yashasvi Jaiswal continued to bat freely. He had a reprieve as well when his catch was dropped by first slip fielder. Virat Kohli looked to score boundaries as well. He survived an lbw call after opting for DRS. Jaiswal reached his half-century from 43 balls in the 16th over. In the same over, he got out off Taijul Islam in an attempt to finish the run chase with ease. He scored 51 runs from 45 deliveries including eight fours and a six. Later, Rishabh Pant finished the run chase with a six. On the other end, Virat Kohli remained unbeaten for 29 off 37 balls.
Shadman, Mushfiqur lack support from teammates
Earlier in Day 5, Bangladesh walked out to bat with 26/2 on the board. In his second over, Ravichandran Ashwin got rid of first innings centurion Mominul Haque. The left-handed batter was caught at leg slip in an attempt to play the sweep shot. Skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto and opener Shadman Islam batted with positive intent. After the drinks break, the partnership was broken by Ravindra Jadeja. Shanto got bowled in an attempt to reverse sweep. He scored 19 runs from 37 balls.
Meanwhile, Shadman reached his fifty from 97 balls. In the next over, he was caught at slip cordon by Jaiswal. The opener scored 50 runs from 101 balls including 10 fours. Jadeja in his second over got rid of Litton Das as well. The collapse continued as Jadeja dismissed Shakib Al Hasan caught and bowled. Mushfiqur Rahim and Miraz tried to hold the fort. Bumrah came back into the attack to cut short Miraz's stay at the crease. Mushfiqur tried to bat with the tail but Bumrah trapped Taijul in front of the wickets. He wrapped up Bangladesh's innings with an off-cutter to dismiss Mushfiqur. He scored 37 runs from 63 balls as Bangladesh were bowled out for 146 from 47 overs.
What happened earlier in the Kanpur Test?
Earlier in Test, Rohit won the toss and opted to bowl first. Only 35 overs were bowled on Day 1 and for the next two days there was no play due to rain and wet outfield. Mominul Haque starred for Bangladesh with an unbeaten 107 as they were bowled out for 233 on Day 4. In reply, Jaiswal's 72, KL Rahul's 43-ball 68 and other useful contributions helped India post 285/9 from just 34.4 overs. Mehidy and Shakib bagged four wickets each but couldn't stop India from taking a 52-run lead before Rohit declared. Before the end of Day 4, Ashwin struck twice to take Zakir Hasan and Hasan Mahmud's wickets.
