Bangladesh made history by securing a 10-wicket victory against Pakistan in the first Test match of the series at Rawalpindi. This victory marked Bangladesh’s first-ever Test win against Pakistan in 14 attempts. Before this match, Bangladesh had lost 12 games, primarily by large margins, and had drawn one.
This win relieved the nation, dealing with political unrest and severe flooding over the past two months.
On the fifth and final day of the Test, Bangladesh’s spinners turned the game around on a pitch that offered little help to the bowlers. Left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan, recently involved in a legal case, delivered a crucial performance. Off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz supported him well, with figures of 4-21, while Shakib took 3-44. Their combined efforts restricted Pakistan to 146 runs in their second innings, leaving Bangladesh with a simple target of 30 runs.
Openers Zakir Hasan and Shadman Islam comfortably chased down the target in 6.3 overs, with Zakir hitting the winning boundary. Zakir scored 15, while Shadman remained unbeaten on 9.
Mushfiqur Rahim’s remarkable 191 in the first innings helped Bangladesh post 565 runs, their highest Test score against Pakistan, and gain a 117-run lead. Despite the pitch favouring batters, Bangladesh’s bowlers turned the tide on the final day.
Pakistan started Day 5 at 23-1 but quickly lost captain Shan Masood for 14, followed by Babar Azam for 22. Shakib then dismissed Saud Shakeel for a duck, tipping the match in Bangladesh’s favour. Although Abdullah Shafique and Mohammad Rizwan tried to save the game, Shakib and Miraz’s spin proved too challenging. Rizwan top-scored for Pakistan with 51 runs before being dismissed by Miraz.
Pakistan declared their first innings at 448-6 after centuries from Rizwan and Shakeel. However, Bangladesh’s impressive batting and sharp bowling secured a memorable win.
