Afghanistan 211 for 4 (Rahmat 84*, Malik 62, Ebadot 2-50) trail Bangladesh 346 (Tanzid 83, Shadman 67, Saleem 4-82, Ahmadzai 3-79) by 135 runs
Rahmat was unbeaten on 84 off 186 balls with eight fours and a six, while Alikhil’s 26 came off 91 balls. Ebadot Hossain was Bangladesh’s best bowler of the day.Bangladesh wicketkeeper Litton Das got his side back into the contest shortly after the tea break. He first took a brilliant diving catch to his right, when the set Abdul Malik edged Ebadot five balls into the third session. Malik made 62 off 120 balls, with five boundaries including a six.
Abdul Malik scored his maiden Test fifty•Afghanistan Cricket Board
Next over, Litton completed a fine stumping when a Mehidy Hasan Miraz delivery turned and bounced sharply against Hashmatullah Shahidi. The former Afghanistan captain lasted just two balls as he fell for a duck.
Alikhil started with two well-timed boundaries before reining himself in for the next nine overs. Rahmat broke the boundary drought with two fours off Nayeem Hasan in the 60th over. He first pumped the offspinner through midwicket before finding the gap through mid-off for the second four.
Afghanistan then held off the Bangladesh bowling for the next 17 overs without a single boundary. Finally in the 77th over, Rahmat struck Mehidy for two fours in a row, both superb shots through extra cover, as he brought up Afghanistan’s 200.
The day began with the Afghanistan pace bowlers removing the two remaining Bangladesh wickets. It took them 8.3 overs, with Mohammad Saleem picking up his fourth wicket, having Taijul Islam caught behind and Yamin Ahmadzai removing Ebadot with a slower delivery.
Mohammad Saleem finished with four wickets•Afghanistan Cricket Board
Saleem finished with 4 for 82, having taken 6 for 140 against India in Afghanistan’s previous Test in June. Ahmadzai took three and Ismat Alam two wickets. This was the first time a fast bowling attack took nine wickets in a Test innings in Abu Dhabi.
After bowling out Bangladesh for 346, Afghanistan went to lunch on 34 for 1. Sediqullah Atal edged Hasan Mahmud to first slip. Atal struck three fours in his knock but also survived a caught-behind appeal in the third over. Replays showed that he had inside-edged it but Bangladesh did not use the review.
After lunch, Afghanistan batted positively. Shahidullah swept Mehidy while Mahmud conceded two fours early. Malik played the ball confidently, but Bangladesh kept things tight from both ends. It created a wicket when Shahidullah top-edged a hook against Ebadot in the 21st over. Mahmud took a good tumbling catch running in from fine-leg, as Shahidullah fell for 20 off 44 balls.
Rahmat though immediately stamped his authority with a crunchy cover drive in the same over. He hit Taijul for a straight six shortly afterwards, with Malik repeating the dose to the same bowler after a few more overs. Malik also cover-drove Nayeem before reaching his maiden Test half-century in the 34th over.