Indian pacers dominate Bangladesh's batters as 17 wickets topple on Day Two

CHENNAI: Buoyed by Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja’s heroics on first day, the Indian bowlers took the fight to the visitors' batting unit, who were overwhelmed by the pace and precision of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep, dismantling them in no time and leaving little room for resistance on Day Two at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.

India finished the first innings at 376 and Bangladesh was bundled out for 149, there wasn’t a follow-on and India leads by 308 runs heading into day three. Earlier on Friday, the partnership between Ashwin and Jadeja, which breathed life into India’s innings on Thursday, ended in the 83rd over. Taskin Ahmed consistently tested Jadeja with the new ball and eventually got the better of him with a length delivery, which Jadeja edged to the keeper, Litton Das. The duo's seventh-wicket partnership contributed 199 runs. Taskin then dismissed Ashwin in the following overs, thanks to a sharp catch running to his left by Najmul Shanto. The wide-length ball was lofted into the air, and Shanto made good efforts to collect it. A fielder who had a rough time on the field was Shakib Al Hasan, who dropped a relatively easy catch off Akash Deep. Thereafter Deep went on to punish Bangladesh by hitting consecutive boundaries. However, Taskin eventually removed him when he attempted a big shot but was beaten by the length, sending the ball high into the air and into Najmul's palms. Hasan challenged Jasprit Bumrah twice in the 92nd over—first with an unsuccessful LBW appeal, and then on the next ball he finally picked his fifth wicket of the innings as he went down on his knees.

India wrapped up their first innings with a total of 376 runs. As for Bangladesh’s batting, on a pitch that has been challenging to read, their decision to field four left-handers at the top didn’t pay off, as the top order collapsed, leaving them staring at 73/5 by the 21st over. Bumrah, who has been in unstoppable form lately, made the new ball count, picking up a wicket in his very first over. He came around the wicket and deceived Shadman Islam, who misread the ball as it clipped the top of his stumps. Soon after, Akash joined the party, taking back-to-back wickets. He uprooted Zakir Hasan’s middle stump as he went for a drive and was beaten inside the line. Mominul Haque followed next, as the ball deflected off his pad and onto the stumps. At lunch, Bangladesh was struggling at 26/3. Shortly after the break, Bumrah struck again, removing Mushfiqur Rahim. Bumrah's length looked even more lethal as the ball swung after bouncing and was edged to KL Rahul at slip. Shakib, was the next to fall, this time to Siraj. Shakib and Litton Das briefly steadied the innings, adding 51 runs for the sixth wicket before Jadeja dismissed the former. Hasan, who had removed Bumrah earlier in the day, could hardly have imagined facing him again so soon. But with wickets falling rapidly, Hasan found himself up against Bumrah once more, this time with the bat. He hung his bat out at a good-length ball, and Virat Kohli took the catch. India's relentless bowling took the Bangladesh batters by the scruff of their necks, as they were all out for 149 in 47.1 overs. There was no follow-on and India came out to bat once again. Yashasvi Jaiswal started with a beautiful four-down long-off but the disappointing run from India’s top-order continued with Rohit, Jaiswal, and Kohli all walked back by the end of day’s proceedings.

Brief Scores: India 376 in 91.2 overs (R Ashwin 113, R Jadeja 86, Y Jaiswal 56, H Mahmud 5/83, T Ahmed 3/55) and 81/3 in 23 overs vs Bangladesh 149 in 47.1 overs (J Bumrah 4/50)