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Bangladesh v England, 1st Test Day Four: Five Things We Learned

Bangladesh v England, 1st Test Day Four: Five Things We Learned

Another thrilling day in Chittagong sets up for a mad dash tomorrow, as England search for two wickets and Bangladesh chase 33 runs. Here’s what we learned from day four…

MAN OF THE DAY - Sabbir Rahman (59 not out)

After three overs in part-time leg spin and a forgettable 19 in Bangladesh’ first innings – he didn’t bowl in England’s second go – you’d be mistaken for thinking Sabbir Rahman was a shoe-in for the “Thanks For Coming” award. Even his limited overs record, while showing potential, does not exactly suggest international class. And yet, here he is, unbeaten on 59 as Bangladesh’ only hope of a historic victory of England. Coming in just as the tourists sensed they were getting back into the game, he kept his composure and hit some fine boundaries, including two sixes against Moeen Ali that not only released pressure but also put enough doubt in Alastair Cook’s mind that Ali was not used in the last 30 overs of the day. Rahman is on the cusp of one of the great Test debuts.

THE CHANCE

With 83 runs still to get and a sixth wicket partnership motoring along, Stuart Broad charged in with a ball 62-overs old, which had shown signs of reverse swing but not as much as England hoped. With one on leg stump, Sabbir Rahman tickled it fine. Jonny Bairstow, in perhaps one of his best performances behind the stumps, dove to his left to take a diving catch that he has taken many times before. This time, he didn’t. The mind went back to Barbados in 2015, when Jos Buttler dropped Jermaine Blackwood, who went on to score an unbeaten 47, allowing West Indies to square the series in the third and final Test. With Rahman unbeaten overnight on 59, the only person getting less sleep than him will be Bairstow…

BROAD TURNS UP

The Sunday Times cricket writer Simon Wilde stumbled upon an interesting fact: Stuart Broad has only ever taken three fourth-innings wickets in Asia. All of them have come at Chittagong – two of them today. It has been a strange game for Broad. He bowled just eight of the 86 overs in Bangladesh’s first innings, before starting today with a shoddy run out – not entirely his fault – before being used as the fifth bowler. He has, understandably, cut a frustrated figure. But, just when it looked like the dropped catch of Rahman and oa delayed called for a review were about to push him over the edge (his reaction to the latter is priceless) he focussed his energy into his gruelling nine-over stint that threatened to mutate into one of those devastating Broad spells. Reversing the ball at pace, he trapped Mehedi Hasan on the crease and then removed Kamrul Islam, via an inside edge onto pad and into the hands of short leg.

QUESTIONS FOR COOK

Before Gareth Batty was brought on for a spell in which he removed Mushfiqur Rahim with some devilish turn and bounce in the 68th over, he had been twiddling his thumbs at mid on for 33. This after dismissing Mominul Haque and Mahmudullah LBW. When Adil Rashid was getting lavish turn away from the right-hander, Cook had mid on back, which allowed singles to be taken in that general vicinity while adding little by way of a wicket threat (to have hit a six in that region, considering the direction the ball was turning off the pitch would have been an incredible shot). Then, as mentioned earlier, Moeen Ali was ignored for 30 overs at the end, despite turning the ball at pace throughout the match. All three instances bemused and all three could do with explaining, not least because the logic was not particularly evident from the outside. Of course, it is much easier to captain from a sofa, but with the game on the line, Cook’s reluctance to rely on England’s spin options was abundantly clear.

WHAT NEXT

Set that alarm and make sure you’re in front of your TV or radio for 5am. If you have watched any of this Test – certainly any of today – it would be a shame if you were to miss what looks set to be a thrilling conclusion. By way of a teaser, consider this: 19 teams have needed 33 runs to win, with just two wickets left (with a result being achieved). In those instances, nine teams have successfully knocked off the runs while 10 have lost out to the fielding sides. It’s still anyone’s game…