https://arab.news/5ujme
- Pakistan resumed at precarious 158-4 before middle-order duo added 98 runs in two-hour and 15-minute session
- Shakeel was unbeaten 86 and Rizwan 89 in an unbeaten 142-run fifth-wicket stand that has held off Bangladesh
RAWALPINDI: Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan blunted the Bangladesh bowling attack on Thursday, guiding Pakistan to 256-4 at lunch on the second day of the first Test in Rawalpindi.
Pakistan resumed at a precarious 158-4, before the middle-order duo added 98 runs in an extended two-hour and 15-minute session after play on the first day was delayed by a wet outfield.
Shakeel was unbeaten 86 and Rizwan 89 in an unbeaten 142-run fifth-wicket stand that has held off the Bangladesh pace and spin attacks.
Looking for early wickets to take control of the match, Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto used all his bowlers but failed to find a way through after making early inroads on Wednesday that saw Pakistan reeling at 16-3.
Express pacer Nahid Rana proved expensive with his 15 wicket-less overs leaking 80 runs as the pitch eased out under bright sunshine.
Shakeel hit five boundaries in his steady 169-ball innings, while Rizwan hammered one six and seven boundaries off 131 deliveries.
Pacers Shoriful Islam (2-43) and Hasan Mahmud (2-55) were the wicket-takers for Bangladesh on day one but failed to replicate their heroics before lunch on Thursday.
The two-match series is part of the World Test Championship’s third cycle with Pakistan currently sixth and Bangladesh eighth on the nine-team table.