Spin backfires as West Indies seal eight-wicket win

Bangladesh had a 27-run first-innings lead and dreams of victory, but the match began to slip away from them on the third day. The fourth day brought nothing but disappointment as the hosts failed to make a contest of it despite setting West Indies a target of 170. A combination of batting failures, dropped catches and ineffective bowling left Najmul Hossain Shanto’s side with an eight-wicket defeat in the Mirpur Test.

Bangladesh’s bowlers looked helpless against West Indies’ positive batting approach. The visitors scored at 4.81 runs per over and reached their target in just 35.1 overs, taking only 148 minutes to complete the chase.

Brandon King raised his bat and spread his arms after driving Taijul Islam through mid-off for a boundary, sealing West Indies’ eight-wicket victory and sparking celebrations in the visiting camp.

West Indies, once a dominant force in Test cricket, are now grappling with financial difficulties. Securing the prize money from the ICC World Test Championship for their players is one of their key objectives. They also faced the challenge of climbing from eighth place in the current cycle’s standings. Before the Bangladesh series, head coach Daren Sammy had used the prospect of WTC prize money to motivate his players. Their performance in Mirpur showed that his message had hit home.

Four places below Bangladesh in the standings before the match, West Indies turned the tables on the hosts. Bangladesh had planned to trap their opponents with spin but ended up falling into their own trap. Left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican and off-spinner Roston Chase tormented the home batters in both innings, leaving Bangladesh to suffer an eight-wicket defeat despite setting a target of 170.

Bangladesh had ended the third day in trouble at 79-6, with Chase (3-25) and Warrican (2-19) exploiting the spin-friendly conditions. Their lead stood at just 106, and the hosts were hoping unbeaten batters Jaker Ali and Nayeem Hasan would take it to 200. But Bangladesh’s resistance lasted only 80 minutes on the fourth morning, with the side adding just 63 runs.

The Jaker-Nayeem partnership was broken in the first over of the day. Jaker was drawn into playing too early at Warrican’s slower delivery and edged a catch to slip, departing for 22 off 34 balls.

Hasan Mahmud followed, trapped lbw while playing off the back foot against the same bowler. A review failed to save him as he departed for eight off 31 balls. Chase then claimed Bangladesh’s final two wickets. Taijul Islam was trapped lbw after stepping forward to play a good-length delivery, scoring eight off 16 balls.

Nayeem was the only Bangladesh batter to make a significant contribution in the second innings. Playing his 16th Test, he scored his maiden half-century, making 52 off 91 balls in 105 minutes, with four boundaries. His innings ended when he danced down the track to Chase and was caught at long-on.

The wicket completed Chase’s fifth five-wicket haul in Test cricket. He finished with 5-36 in 15.4 overs, including 2-11 in 5.4 overs on the fourth morning.

Warrican, who had troubled Bangladesh with a five-wicket haul in the first innings, claimed four more in the second. He took 4-61 in 19 overs on the fourth morning, finishing with nine wickets for 116 runs in the match, his third-best bowling performance in Test cricket.

With the Mirpur pitch offering turn from the second day, Bangladesh had placed their faith in three spinners to defend a target of 170. But the plan failed to deliver. The hosts also dropped two straightforward catches and were left frustrated by three reviews that went against them because of umpire’s calls.

West Indies came out attacking from the outset. John Campbell and King added 112 for the opening wicket in just 112 minutes, putting Bangladesh’s bowlers under sustained pressure.

Campbell fell one run short of his half-century, bowled by Shoriful Islam. Tagenarine Chanderpaul was then caught at fine leg while attempting to hook a short delivery from fellow pacer Hasan Mahmud.

But King, who remained unbeaten to guide his side home, proved difficult to dislodge. On 44, he edged Shoriful to Shanto at slip, but Bangladesh failed to hold the catch. At 70, he offered another chance off Taijul, this time at long-off, but Ebadot Hossain could not take it.

King made the most of both reprieves, finishing unbeaten on 81 off 115 balls, including 10 fours and a six. At the other end, Kavem Hodge remained not out on 31 off 27 deliveries. Their unbroken third-wicket stand of 50 came in just 8.3 overs at a rate of 5.88 runs per over.

Beyond the batting collapse, Bangladesh’s team strategy is also coming under scrutiny. Their recent successes, including a Test series whitewash of Pakistan at home and a remarkable victory in Darwin against Australia, had owed much to the batters’ contributions. Batting coach Mohammad Ashraful had received considerable praise for his work. That makes the decision to change the batting coach ahead of the West Indies series all the more puzzling.

Another question is why Bangladesh abandoned the sporting pitches that had helped them achieve recent success in favour of a slow, spin-friendly surface for this series. Last year, they won four consecutive ODI series on sporting wickets and whitewashed opponents in two Test series. Why, then, did they rely so heavily on spin in Mirpur?

The decision to replace curator Badiul Alam Khokon, who had played a key role in those recent successes, with Tony Hemming to prepare the pitch has also come under renewed scrutiny.

Ultimately, Bangladesh cannot escape responsibility for flawed planning, batting failures and poor fielding. Having entered the match hoping to climb from fourth to second in the standings, they suffered a heavy setback in Mirpur. In trying to trap West Indies with spin, the hosts fell into their own trap and paid the price with an eight-wicket defeat.