All-round Rashid ensures Afghans on top after day two

It was a day when the momentum swung back and forth between Bangladesh and Afghanistan but after day two it will be the Afghans that will be much happier in the one-off Test being played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chottogram. 

Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan starred with both bat and ball to give the visitors a big chance of winning the Test. 

First he scored his maiden half-century in Tests and then he went on to take four top-order wickets to break Bangladesh’s batting backbone and peg the hosts back. 

Late in the day Mosaddek Hossain and Taijul Islam showed some fight and application with the bat to take the score to 194. 

But Bangladesh are still 148 runs behind the Afghanistan 1st innings total of 342 and have only two wickets remaining. 

Earlier in the day, Afghanistan batsman Asghar Afghan didn’t add much to his overnight score of 88 and was out for 92 by Taijul. 

His partner, Afsar Zazai was also dismissed shortly afterwards for  41, once again by Taijul who had four wickets in the innings and was the pick of the Bangladesh bowlers. 

However, Rashid came on and started to play positively to score 51 off 61 deliveries in an innings that had two fours and three sixes. 

That ensured the visitors had their highest total in their short Test history.

During Bangladesh’s batting innnings, opener Shadman Islam lost his wicket in the very first over for a duck to fast bowler Yamin Ahmadzai.

Ahmadzai showed with his swing and pace that the surface had something to offer for the pace bowlers and Bangladesh might have missed a big trick by not picking one in their team. 

Somya Sarkar and Liton Das - who was promoted up the order - tried to build a partnership but Soumya was trapped in front by Mohammad Nabi and was gone for 17. 

Liton soon perished playing across the line and was bowled to give Rashid his first scalp.

The biggest blow for the hosts however came in the last over before tea when Rashid took two big wickets - that of his opposite number Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim.

Rashid continued to trouble batsmen on a pitch that was starting to show variable bounce and had Mahmudullah bowled to a delivery that kept low and Bangladesh were 104-6.

Mominul Haque was the only batsman to be taking the attack to the Afghan bowlers and he was a bright spot in the Bangladesh innings as he scored 52 from 71 balls.

But the diminutive left-hander also played a poor shot to gift his wicket away to Nabi in an innings that had eight fours. 

Leg-spinner Qais Ahmed had his maiden Test wicket as he dismissed Mehidy Hasan Miraz for 11 and Bangladesh were 146-8. 

From there Mosaddek and Taijul have formed a 48 run partnership but a big first innings deficit for the hosts loom large.