5 instances when Bangladesh lost a Test from a position of strength
Bangladesh came agonisingly close to recording a monumental victory against England at Chittagong in the 1st Test of a 2-match series. The visitors, though, managed to keep their nerves and won the match by a margin of 22 runs.
This is the narrowest Test defeat in terms of runs for the Bangladeshis; however, it is certainly not the first time that they have lost a match despite having an upper hand over the opposition at some stage. It has happened on a number of occasions, that too, against some of the best teams in world cricket.
Here are 5 instances when Bangladesh lost a Test from a position of strength:
#5 Against South Africa at Mirpur, 2008
Loss Margin – 5 wickets
Out of the 10 Tests that they have played against South Africa so far, Bangladesh have lost 8 and two of them were drawn. However, the win-loss ratio between the Tigers and the Proteas could easily have been 1-7, had the former not thrown away the advantage that they held in a Test at Mirpur in 2008.
The home sided batted first but the duo of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel proved too hot to handle for their batsmen and they were dismissed for 194. The Bangladeshi bowlers seemed unfazed by the dismal showing from their batting counterparts and proceeded to blow away their mighty opponents for just 170 runs.
Although the hosts had taken a slender 22-run lead, they certainly had a psychological advantage over the South Africans. But they failed to make the most of it as a five-wicket haul from Jacques Kallis ensured that the Bangladeshis managed only 182 runs in their 2nd innings.
South Africa’s batsmen recovered from their debacle in the first innings to complete a pretty comfortable chase and win by 5 wickets.