Bangladesh allrounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz has said the situation in the Mirpur Test was "fifty-fifty" after the hosts ended the third day 34 runs ahead of Pakistan will all their second-innings wickets in tact.
"We still have two days remaining in the Test, but the situation is fifty-fifty at the moment since we didn't take a big enough lead," Mehidy said after taking 5 for 102 in Pakistan's first innings. "We have to bat responsibly, as you never know what score is safe in the Mirpur wicket. I think we should get a lead close to 300 runs at least. The wicket may be harder to bat on the fourth and fifth day. Our batters have to show responsibility."
The third day's play had begun with Pakistan 179 for 1, and they progressed to 210 for 1 before Bangladesh fought back with four wickets for 20 runs. Taskin Ahmed and Mehidy triggered the collapse with two wickets each; Taskin accounted for the centurion Azan Awais and captain Shan Masood, while Mehidy dismissed Saud Shakeel and Abdullah Fazal.
Taskin could have had a third wicket but he overstepped when he drew an edge from Salman Agha and had him caught behind. Agha was on 0 off 13 balls at the time and went on to make 58, adding 119 runs for the sixth wicket with Mohammad Rizwan. Pakistan were eventually dismissed for 389, conceding a lead of 27. Bangladesh ended the day on 7 for 0.
"Partnerships can happen in cricket," Mehidy said. "We certainly had the opportunity by putting them under pressure during that time. Unfortunately, there was a no-ball. If it wasn't a no-ball, it would have been a different scenario. After a batter gets a life, he gets into a different mindset. I still think we came back well with the ball. We bowled well, and even dominated them on many occasions. Our bowlers should get the credit."
Taskin was playing his first Test since Bangladesh's tour of West Indies in 2024, and Mehidy praised his performance. "I thought Taskin bowled well today. He made life easier for me at the other end, particularly when Pakistan were losing quick wickets [before lunch]. He was not giving away too many runs, so we had a strong bowling partnership.
"If you are leaking runs from one end, there's also no point of putting a check on runs from your end. If you bowl tightly from both ends, you get a chance to pick up wickets. Taskin was coming back to Test cricket after a long time. Rana and Ebadot also bowled well. We didn't allow them a lead at the end of the day, which is a positive for the bowling unit."
Mehidy's five-wicket haul was his first in more than 12 months, a period in which he took just five wickets in three Tests against Ireland and Sri Lanka. In ODIs as well, he was economical but struggled for wickets. He said he had not been a confident bowler recently, but always believed he could deliver in Tests.
"I didn't have a lot of confidence when I was bowling in the ODIs against Pakistan and New Zealand recently. I worked a lot on my bowling, so my confidence grew. I think I am an effective bowler even when I am not taking regular wickets. Test cricket gives you a lot more opportunities, as you get a lot of time to maintain yourself as a bowler."