Bangladesh Rescues Innings at Mirpur Test with Miraz and Jaker's Partnership

On the third day of the Mirpur Test, Bangladesh ended the first session at 201 runs for the loss of 6 wickets after 63 overs, trailing South Africa by just 1 run. Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada claimed 4 wickets in this session, including the crucial dismissals of Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Mushfiqur Rahim. Jaker Ali Anik remained unbeaten on 30 runs from 71 balls, while Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who scored a vital fifty, helped steer the team away from the brink of innings defeat.

Starting the day at 101 for 3, Bangladesh was under pressure after losing 3 quick wickets in the morning session. Joy, who had contributed a solid 40 runs, was dismissed while attempting to drive a ball from Rabada that edged into the slip cordon, breaking his 46-run partnership with Mushfiq.

Kagiso Rabada's brilliance didn’t stop with Joy; he soon bowled Mushfiqur Rahim, uprooting the stumps as the experienced batter fell for 33 runs. This marked a notable achievement for Rabada, who dismissed Mushfiq in both innings of the Test.

With the loss of two set batsmen, Bangladesh found itself in deep trouble, which was compounded by the dismissal of Liton Das. After scoring just 1 run in the first innings, Liton managed only 7 runs this time before edging a catch to wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne off Keshav Maharaj, leaving Bangladesh at 112 for 6.

However, Mehedi Hasan Miraz and debutant Zaker Ali Anik steadied the ship with a resilient partnership. The duo carefully navigated through the crisis, not only recovering from the innings defeat threat but also turning the situation around to take a lead. Miraz completed his 9th Test fifty, scoring his runs off 94 balls.

As they headed into the lunch break with 6 wickets down, Bangladesh's score stood at 201, just 1 run shy of South Africa’s first innings total. The partnership between Miraz and Zaker, which has added 87 runs so far, proved crucial in this recovery effort.