RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (AP) and Staff Writer – Bangladesh’s Nahid Rana rattled the top-order with his pace bowling as Pakistan lost regular wickets in the second innings of the final Test in Rawalpindi.
Rana (3-22) picked up three wickets off his first three overs after Taskin provided the breakthrough when skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto dived low to his left and grabbed a two-handed catch to dismiss Saim Ayub for 20.
Skipper Shan Masood struck four boundaries in his 28 before Pakistan’s innings crashed against Rana’s pace.
Masood and Saud Shakeel got slight edges, and Pakistan’s premier batter Babar Azam’s struggle in red-ball continued when he edged to Shadman Islam at slip. Shadman dropped a regulation chance next ball to give Rizwan a big reprieve.
Babar has been going through a poor run of form, and it’s now been eight test matches since he posted a half-century. His top score in that time was 41 against Australia in Melbourne last year.
He scored just 11 in the second innings of the final Test. He has amassed 64 runs from four innings against Bangladesh. The right-handed batter managed 0 and 22 in the first game of the contest, which Pakistan lost by 10 wickets in Rawalpindi. In the second Test, he was looking good before Shakib Al Hasan got rid of him. He accumulated 31 runs off 77 balls, laced with two fours.
Babar has been dismissed three times by fast bowlers and once by a spinner. He is uable to come into the line of the ball and is giving regulation catches behind the stumps.
Babar’s form is a big concern as Pakistan will play important matches against England. He has been completely out of touch since the 2023 ODI World Cup in India.
Former cricketers want Babar to take a break from the sport to come out of slump. However, he is not ready.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh is chasing a rare away win in a test series after notching a historic 10-wicket win in the first Test at the same venue.
Both teams are near the bottom of the World Test Championship, with Bangladesh occupying the seventh spot and Pakistan just ahead of the last-placed West Indies.