Nearly five months after being beaten 2-0 in a pace-dominated series in the West Indies, Bangladesh served up revenge on a spinning platter to the same opponents with an innings-and-184-run win in the Dhaka Test to complete a 2-0 series win. The victory was their first innings win in Test cricket. Mehidy Hasan Miraz underscored the supremacy of spinners with his match figures of 12 for 117, surpassing his own record for the best bowling figures for Bangladesh.
Mehidy took nine wickets on the third day, the most by a Bangladesh bowler on a single day, and all 40 West Indies wickets fell to the Bangladesh spinners, a first for a bowling side in a two-Test series.
Mehidy completed his second five-for in the game by dismissing Jomel Warrican caught and bowled for a duck, which was West Indies’ ninth, before Taijul Islam took the wicket of Shermon Lewis to complete the win, after the No. 11 had added 42 runs for the tenth wicket with Kemar Roach.
Amid innings totals of 111 and 213, Shimron Hetmyer was the only West Indies batsman to stand out, striking nine sixes and a four in his 93 off 92 balls. His tally of sixes was the most by a batsman in Tests against Bangladesh, surpassing Kumar Sangakkara’s eight sixes in Chittagong in 2014.
The rest of the line-up couldn’t withstand the pressure created by the Bangladesh spinners. Kraigg Brathwaite’s wretched tour of the subcontinent concluded when Shakib had him lbw for one before the lunch break. In four Tests in India and Bangladesh, Brathwaite totaled only 48 runs, averaging 6. Kieran Powell’s response to spin remained poor too: in the second innings, he charged at Mehidy, only to miss and was stumped by Mushfiqur Rahim, who had dropped him in the bowler’s previous over.
Taijul Islam, who had bowled only one over in the first innings, then got into the game. Trapping Sunil Ambris with his second delivery. In his next over, he had Roston Chase caught at cover by Mominul Haque, leaving West Indies at 29 for 4.
Hetmyer, who had struck one six before lunch, began the second session with a pull off Mehidy over midwicket before launching Taijul for two successive sixes over long-on in the 19th over. Hetmyer was dropped on 40 by Mushfiqur, but he went after Shakib, hitting three sixes in the 36th over, even as West Indies lost Shai Hope and Shane Dowrich.
Hetmyer entered the nineties with his ninth six but off the very next ball, he drove a catch straight to Mohammad Mithun at long-off, giving Mehidy his 11th wicket. Roach at No. 9, struck seven fours in his unbeaten 37 off 49 balls but his innings only delayed the inevitable defeat.
West Indies’ first innings had lasted just 51 minutes on the third morning, after resuming from 75 for 5. Mehidy took four of those five wickets, starting with a caught-and-bowled that sent Hetmyer back for 39, after the batsman in Mehidy’s first over of the day.
Hetmyer and Dowrich added 57 for the sixth wicket in the first innings, and after Hetmyer fell, Mehidy had Devendra Bishoo brilliantly caught by Shadman Islam at silly mid-off, when the batsman struck the ball firmly into his lap. Kemar Roach was Mehidy’s sixth, caught at deep mid-on after Shakib had dropped his caught-and-bowled chance in the previous over. Dowrich was out lbw to Mehidy for 37 off 75 balls before Shakib wrapped up the West Indies first innings by dismissing Shermon Lewis for his third
wicket. West Indies’ first innings included the unique feat of the top five all being bowled by spinners, a first in Test cricket, as they slipped to 29 for 5 in 12 overs on the second evening. (cricinfo)
