IND v BAN: Rahim, Hasan lead Bangladesh fightback at stumps on Day 3

Shakib Al Hasan plays a shot on the third day of a solo Test match between India and Bangladesh Pic AFPHyderabad Indian bowlers faced dogged resistance from Bangladesh middleorder led by captain Mushfiqur Rahim who hit a defiant 81 to take his team to 322 for six at stumps on day three of the oneoff Test here todayPremier allrounder Shakib Al Hasans attacking 82 also contributed to Bangladeshs fightback At close of play Rahim was ably supported by Mehedi Hasan Miraz who was batting solidly batting on 51However the visitors still trail India by 365 runs after the hosts declared at 687 for six yesterdayUmesh Yadav 272 in 18 overs was Indias best bowler on display but spin twins Ravichandran Ashwin 177 in 24 overs and Ravindra Jadeja 160 in 29 overs didnt look incisive despite being economical on a track that is still pretty good for batting Ashwin infact was hit for 12 boundariesIshant Sharma 154 in 16 overs looked more effective with the old ball but he did inflict some pain to Mushfiqur with a snorter that had him in some pain But the gritty Bangladesh skipper whipped the next for a boundaryWhile India still have the upperhand with two full days of play Bangladesh certainly would have gained confidence as they showed stomach for some fight in the last two sessions of the day after a poor morningThe young Miraz showed maturity beyond his years to help his captain by playing risk free cricket only hitting the loose deliveries en route a maiden Test halfcenturyMushfiqur hit 12 boundaries in 206 balls while Miraz hit 10 boundaries in 103 balls The final session yielded 76 runs in 30 oversThe seventh wicket partnership between Mushfiqur and Miraz yielded 87 runs in 325 overs but more importantly showed that there arent too many demons in the pitchIndias captain Virat Kohli R and teammates leave the field for a teabreak on the third day of a solo Test match between India and Bangladesh at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on February 11 2017 PicPTIThe best part was their application in the final session There was a point of time when Mushfiqur had scored only four runs in an hour in the post tea session He was ready to put his head down and defend and with very less turn on offer Ashwin never looked menacingBangladesh still need 166 runs to avoid followon and on a fresh morning a few quick wickets can mean that Virat Kohli would like to ensure follow on But with his bowlers already sending down 104 overs he might just want to give them rest and pile a few runs in the second inningsThe post lunch session was comparatively better for Bangladesh with 121 runs coming at the loss of two wicketsBut India after getting Shakib and Shabbir Rahman in quick succession looked in complete control before Mushfiqur and Mehedi resistedShakib who was instrumental in stemming the first session rot went on the counter smashing his way to 82 off only 103 balls before his indiscretion landed the visitors in troubleOnce Shakib was dismissed the visitors quickly lost another wicket with Shabbir 16 being trapped leg before by JadejaWell set and looking good for a century Shakib couldnt properly connect a lofted shot after giving Ashwin the charge with Umesh Yadav gleefully accepting the easiest of catches at midonHis balance was all awry he didnt reach to the pitch of the delivery and above all the situation didnt warrant that shot with 107 runs already being added by him and other senior pro RahimBangladesh dressing room would have felt good about the session as both the senior players looked comfortable hitting some good shots but Shakibs dismissal robbed them of claiming a session which could rightfully have been theirsShakibs shot selection has been a talking point despite his immense abilities as an allrounder Some of the imperious cover drives off Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Yadav were a treat for the eyes He also attacked Jadeja slogging him to the cow cornerHe got an able ally in Mushfiqur who kept the scorecard busy with his ramp shot off Ishant and the dabs off both Jadeja and Ashwin with an occasional cut shotBangladeshs captain Mushfiqur Rahim R and Shakib Al Hasan gesture on the third day of a solo Test match between India and Bangladesh at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on February 11 2017 PicPTIEarlier Yadav 261 in 15 overs rattled Bangladesh batsmen with pace while Ishant Sharma got some reverse swing going his way as the visitors were left losing three wickets in the prelunch sessionThe first session of the third day certainly belonged to Umesh who worked up good pace for a consistent period of timeThe only batsman who had looked comfortable was Tamim Iqbal 25 and he was unfortunately runout after a horrible mixup with Mominul Haque 12 The miscommunication while going for the second run became Tamims undoing as he could add only a run to his overnight scoreMahmudullah Riyadh 28 and Mominul both were distinctly uncomfortable as Virat Kohli always employed the pacespin attack from both endsAfter Umesh bowled a three overs from the pavilion end Shivlal Yadav End Kohli clevery switched him to the far end VVS Laxman end from which he bowled another six overs at a stretchHe continuous troubled both Mominul and Mahmudullah for a considerable period of time with his outswingers After bowling a number of outswingers he got one to comeback sharply into Mahmudullah which trapped him infront India went for a DRS but it was an umpires call despite the delivery grazing the leg stumpBut Umesh didnt lose heart and lefthander Mominul got a fuller delivery that came in after pitching The umpire promptly adjudged leg before and the batsman didnt even take a reviewIt was a testimony to Umeshs stamina that his pace never dropped during the nine overs that he bowled in the morningMahmudullah and Shakib then added 45 runs during which they played a few drives and also got their share of streaky boundaries in between But righthander Mahmudullah was never in control during his stayOnce Kohli decided to rest Umesh and Jadeja he introduced Ishant and Ashwin from either ends With the SG Test now being 30 plus overs old and the team having maintained the shine it was time for the lanky Ishant to get it to reverse and hit that length close to full which makes life difficult for the batsmanMahmudullah who looked like a walking wicket got one that darted in sharply with hint of reverse as Mahmudullah was beaten The umpire adjudged the batsman leg before and he went for a review which didnt work in his favourIndia however lost their second DRS when Ashwin had got one to straighten enough beating Shakibs bat but it was ruled not out