Rishabh Pant produced yet another game-turning knock in Test cricket, but also fell for the sixth time in the 90s, before he could reach a sixth Test century. Arriving at 72 for 3, which soon became 94 for 4 with Virat Kohli’s exit, Pant attacked the Bangladesh spinners, who’d successfully tied down the Indian top order earlier. Along with Shreyas Iyer, who overcame another short-ball barrage to make 87, Pant revived the Indian innings with a 159-run fifth-wicket partnership that came in just 30 overs.
Bangladesh recovered some ground by taking the last six Indian wickets for only 61, but an 87-run first-innings lead meant the visitors were still ahead going into the third day on a pitch that has kept playing the odd trick, even if it seemed to have slowed down a bit after the first day.
But some in the top order batted as if strokeless survival was the only way to go on this surface; only Shubman Gill departed playing a shot, choosing a pretty full delivery from Taijul Islam to sweep, and missing it.
KL Rahul was in that extreme hesitant mode where he just does not look to score at all, and even his defence appears full of doubts. His dismissal summed up his innings of 10 off 45 deliveries. He looked to reluctantly step out to defend against the immaculately accurate Taijul, then stopped after a couple of short steps, and his half-hearted bat was behind the pad when the ball struck him plumb in front.
At least Cheteshwar Pujara was his usual self, stepping out regularly to push the spinners around. He went to an excellent reflex catch at forward short leg by Mominul Haque; Taijul’s delivery had been pushed off the inside half of the bat, not off the edge, and was travelling fast towards the turf.
Virat Kohli took 73 balls for his 24, determined to keep defending. He then dashed for a non-existent single off the last ball before lunch, and glared at Pant, who’d rightly sent him scrambling back to safety just in time. He went soon after the break, nicking behind off Taskin Ahmed with one his needless defensive pushes well outside off, where he seems to be wanting to just feel some bat on ball.
India were 133 behind at this stage. The morning’s batting effort had taken India nowhere, but there was also no way Pant and Iyer, both with first-class strike-rates around 80, were going to bat like that.
In the first Test, Pant had been bowled while backing away to cut Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s off-spin and missing a straighter one. Now he made sure he didn’t do that; instead, when Mehidy pitched short, Pant stood his ground and whipped him off-position past midwicket for four.
The left-arm spinners Taijul and Shakib Al Hasan were easier to smash through that region, and the presence of a wide long-on and deep midwicket made no difference to Pant. He’d charge out and deposit five sixes in that area in typical fashion, one hand coming off the bat handle, but still imparting sufficient distance on the ball.
Bangladesh had acknowledged his threat as soon as he walked in. They’d bring the field in for Kohli, but for Pant, it would spread out, even when he was in single digits. They weren’t ready to risk too much damage on what is certainly not a high-scoring surface. But Pant would still find his ways to inflict punishment.
Given how he plays, he did offer a couple of half-chances, but became very watchful in his 90s, understandably so, having already missed five Test centuries by a whisker. But it didn’t help as he fell to Mehidy again in similar fashion, trying to make room, and edging behind for 93 off 105.
Iyer, meanwhile, produced his sixth score of 50 or more in only 11 Test innings. He can be scrappy initially, look uncomfortable against the bouncer, but then he counter-attacks and goes on to score decent runs. There was a phase on Friday where he could have gone multiple times in a few deliveries, but he survived and prospered. Surprised by the bounce Taskin was generating, Iyer jabbed one just past gully on 15, and was dropped next ball by Mehidy at the same position on 19. A few overs later, on 21, he charged out at Shakib and failed to connect, but Nurul Hasan missed the stumping.
Iyer has this ability to put behind such developments and hit back at the bowler. Two balls after the stumping reprieve, he cut Shakib for four and in the same over, stepped out to loft him for another down the ground. That lofted hit, straight or over mid-off, kept bringing him runs, as did the swipe over midwicket.
Bangladesh used the bouncer tactic against Iyer for quite some time; seamer Khaled Ahmed banged it into the body from round the wicket with backward square leg, square leg and a squarish midwicket in place. Iyer combated the ploy safely, hooking often through the gaps between those three fielders, along the turf to the man at deep square leg. He will continue to get caught on the crease to pitched-up deliveries while expecting the short ball, but on these slow surfaces, he will mostly get away.
An attempted sweep against Shakib did not come off and found Iyer lbw for 87 off 105. The tail took India past 300, and the Bangladesh openers batted out the six overs possible until stumps, with some delaying tactics leading to sharp reactions from Rahul, Ashwin and Kohli in particular.
Pant raced to a 49-ball fifty, while Iyer needed 11 more balls to bring up his own half-century. (Twitter)
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