Four of Bangladesh’s top seven batsmen hit defiant fifties in a spirited fightback to help the visitors post a score of 5-316 in reply to Pakistan’s 6-448 declared in the opening Test in Rawalpindi.
After Shadman Islam (93) and Mominul Haq (50) stabilised the innings, Mushfiqur Rahim and Litton Das put on an unbroken 98-run stand for the sixth wicket to keep Bangladesh in the competition on Friday.
Bangladesh finished the third day 132 points behind but expect Mushfiqur (55) and Litton (52) to help them close the gap when they resume on Saturday.
With the score at 0-27, Bangladesh’s openers found it difficult to score as Pakistan’s fast bowlers, especially Naseem Shah, bowled with great discipline.
Naseem was finally rewarded when wicket-keeper Mohammad Rizwan flew to his left to take a stunning one-handed catch after Zakir Hasan (12) had struck hard at the ball.
Khurram Shahzad pushed one through the gap in the bat pad of Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto (16) and reduced the deficit of the visitors to 2-53.
Shadman reached a 94-run stand with Mominul, allaying fears of a collapse, but his second hundred in the Test failed to materialise.
After Khurram took Mominul out, Mohammad Ali finished Shadman’s 183-ball task by bowling him through the wicket. The opening knock had 12 fours.
All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan made a quick 15 before sending a delivery from Saim Ayub straight to Pakistan captain Shan Masood at extra cover.
However, Mushfiqur and Litton looked confident on a pitch where bowlers from both sides had to work hard for success.
Pakistan tried a short-pitch attack against Litton, who scored 18 runs from an over by Naseem, including three fours and a six, to reach his fiftieth run in 52 balls.
