Teenage debutant Mehedi Hasan yesterday claimed five wickets for 64 runs to stun England’s top order and give Bangladesh the upper hand in the first Test in Chittagong.
Moeen Ali and Jonny Bairstow scored half-centuries each as England reached 258-7 at stumps on the first day, after skipper Alastair Cook elected to bat first at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium.
Moeen survived five reviews on his way to smashing 68 runs and Bairstow made 52 as England steadied against some superb bowling from Bangladesh’s spinners to post a respectable score.
Photo: AFP
Chris Woakes was 36 not out and Adil Rashid unbeaten on 5.
Experienced spinner Shakib Al Hasan finished the day with 2-46 to complement 18-year-old Mehedi, who became the seventh Bangladeshi bowler to take five wickets on his Test debut.
“I never expected such a debut of this kind,” Mehedi said. “I thought that I would pick up two wickets and score 30 runs, but what happened is something I will remember all my life.”
Moeen was given out three times by umpire Kumar Dharmasena, but his decisions were overturned on each occasion.
He was given out on 17 off Shakib before lunch — and then twice on the same score, in the first over after the break, off the same bowler. Two separate reviews from Bangladesh also failed.
“Not bad on a day after losing three wickets very early. It was pretty tough, but in the end we are pretty happy,” Moeen said. “Definitely I did not think it would spin so much as it did today.”
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