A total of six Bangladeshi batters registered 'duck' on the day one of the first cricket Test against West Indies, leaving the side in a position of embarrassment at Sri Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Thursday.
This was the second straight match in which a record six Bangladeshi batters produced duck and overall third in their Test history. No other team had six batters with duck in more than one game in the cricket's elite format.
Courtesy to the brittle batting, Bangladesh were reduced to 45-6 before captain Shakib Al Hasan's valiant 51 runs knock helped them get past 100 as they were bowled out for 103.
West Indies then ended the day on 95-2, with captain Kraigg Brathwaite batting on 42 and Nkrumah Bonner on 12. They are now trailing by just 8 runs.
This was the consecutive third Test that Bangladesh were six down before crossing 50 runs mark. In the last two Tests at home against Sri Lanka, they tasted the same fate.
The problem worsened when Bangladesh dropped three catches during West Indies innings including one against Braithwaite who could have been out for 0 when Mustafizur Rahman found his edge in just third over of the day.
Mustafizur who returned to the Test side after more than one year, however, led the bowling in impeccable way after the side showed a shaky batting performance.
In his 12 overs, he conceded just 10 runs and took one wicket. The bowling stat proved how decisively he bowled to prevent West Indies batter scoring freely. Bangladesh's prime Test bowler Ebadot Hossain however continued his good bowling show, taking one wicket for 18 runs in 12 overs.
After some luckless effort, Mustafizur finally gave Bangladesh a breakthrough, removing John Campbell for 24 with a delivery that moved sharply to scatter the stump.
The opening pair of Brathwaite and Campbell added 44 runs in 25.1 overs. Ebadot later struck as he produced a beauty to dismiss Raymon Reifer for 11. Bonner and Brathwaite who played 149 balls for his 42 saw off the day without any fuss.
Earlier, West Indies fast bowlers proved their captain Kraigg Brathwaite's decision to bowl first right, using the early moisture of the wicket to good effect. But aside the moisture, Bangladeshi batters will be largely culpable for their listless batting.
Kemar Roach who returned to the fold at the eleventh hour after passing his fitness test, moved the ball admirably to wreck havoc in a reminisce of the Bangladesh's 2018 tour when the Tigers were bowled out for 43 at this same venue.
Opener Mahmudul Hasan Joy poked a moving delivery of Roach in the second ball of the innings to give a catch at slip for duck while Najmul Hossain Shanto followed him in Roach's second over when another ball moved sharply to rattle his stump. He also got a duck.
Mominul Haque's lean batting streak extended to eighth straight single digit figure after he got his second consecutive duck, trying to chase a wide delivery of Jayden Seals.
Tamim Iqbal in the meantime became the second Bangladeshi batter after Mushfiqur Rahim to reach 5000 runs milestone when he reached 19 runs as Bangladesh tried to stab off the collapse.
But he dismissed himself in nasty way. Considering the most senior batter of the side, Tamim's dismissal left everyone in shocked state as he was out on 29, trying to flick a delivery of pacer Alzzari Joseph down the legside. Experts said anyone in the world could have hit it through boundary.
Kyle Myers with his military pace then dealt a double strike in his first over, removing infrom Liton Das for 12 and Nurul Hasan Sohan for naught.
With Bangladesh reeling at 45-6, Shakib and Mehidy Hasan Miraz saw off the first session of the day without further trouble but after the lunch session, Miraz was out for 2, which was a quite similar to out of Tamim.
Shakib then battled lonely to help the side propel past 100 runs even though the lower order fell like pack of cards.
Jayden Seals and Joseph claimed three wickets apiece while Roach and Myers took two wickets apiece.
Source: BSS