Axar, Kuldeep star as India thumped Bangladesh to take 1-0 lead
Kuldeep picked up 8 wickets in the game [Source: Associated Press]
Heading into the fourth innings of this riveting Test match, Bangladesh needed a mountain to climb. Chasing 512 was not easy feat and the home side needed a miracle.
But for a large part of the chase it looked as if Bangla Tigers are up for a fight. They showed grit, determination and great character to push this Indian side to its limit.
A tad more contribution from the middle order and things could have been different for them. Bangladesh can take a lot of positives from this game. Zakir Hasan was the star in the making, as he showed patience and notched up his maiden Test century.
Yes the wicket eased out for the batters in the second innings, but kudos to how the southpaw took a calculative risk against the quality Indian bowlers, especially the trio of Ashwin-Kuldeep-Axar.
He added 124 alongside Najmul Hossain Shanto, who departed for a well crafted 67. But with Litton Das, Yasir Ali and Mushfiqur Rahim not contributing much with the bat, things became difficult for the Tigers.
Skipper Shakib Al Hasan, battling with injuries yet again proved why he is one of the most reliable batters for the home side. With the game long gone, thanks to the twin strike by Axar Patel, Shakib broke the shackles and decided to take on the spinners. He showed a special liking to Axar and was not afraid to use his feet against the wily spinner.
Wickets kept tumbling at the other end but Shakib came through all the odds and scored a blistering half-century. But that wasn't enough as he eventually faltered at the hands of Kuldeep Yadav for 84.
Bangladesh were bundled out for 324 and gave India a comfortable 188 run win.
Axar (4 wickets) and Kuldeep (3 wickets) were chief destroyers with the ball in hand. The duo shared 7 wickets between them and turned out to be the real game changer for the KL Rahul led side.
Brief Score
Bangladesh (2nd innings): 324-10 (113.2)
Zakir Hasan 100 (224), Shakib Al Hasan 84 (108);
Axar Patel 4-77 (32.2), Kuldeep Yadav 3-73 (20)
India win the game by 188 runs
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