Salman Agha challenges Bangladesh in Mirpur Test: Set Pakistan 260 if brave enough
BAN vs PAK, 1st Test: Salman Agha has challenged Bangladesh to set a target of around 260 in 70 overs, insisting Pakistan would go all out for victory in the opening Test at Mirpur.
Salman Ali Agha has thrown an open challenge to Bangladesh, saying Pakistan will push for victory in the opening Test at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. Heading into Day 5, Bangladesh lead by 179 runs with seven wickets in hand.
Salman said that if Bangladesh are brave enough to set Pakistan a target of around 260 in 70 overs, the visitors would back themselves to chase it down. He added that the match is evenly poised and Pakistan will aim to bowl the Tigers out as early as possible on the final day.
Bangladesh vs Pakistan, 1st Test Day 4: Highlights | Scorecard
"Right now you can't say who has the upper hand in this game. And tomorrow will be an exciting day of Test cricket. We just want to get them out as quickly as we can. That's what our strategy is going to be. I don't know about the rest,” Salman said in the press conference after the day’s play.
"Definitely, we will go for the win. If they are brave enough to do that - give us 70 overs and 260 - we will definitely go for the chase. But I don't think they will do that,” Salman said.
Salman, however, said that if Pakistan were in Bangladesh’s position, they would first look to post a massive total and take the opposition out of the contest.
"If we (Pakistan) were in this position we would have tried to do that (post a big total) and we just make sure to take them out of the game, and then give them whatever target we want to give them," Salman said.
HOW THE MIRPUR TEST IN POISED
Rain and fading light continued to disrupt play on Day 4 of the opening Test, but Bangladesh still moved into a commanding position against Pakistan. Despite only 48.4 overs being possible due to repeated rain interruptions, the hosts stretched their overall lead with seven wickets still in hand.
Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto once again led from the front with an unbeaten 58 after his first-innings century, while Mominul Haque added a valuable 56 during a crucial 105-run stand.
Bangladesh finished on 152 for three, with Mushfiqur Rahim unbeaten alongside Shanto. With the Mirpur pitch expected to deteriorate further, Bangladesh will aim to build a lead beyond 250 before declaring on the final day.