West Indies grabbed the advantage in a wicketless second session with
Kieran Powell and Shivnarine Chanderpaul putting together a solid
partnership by scoring fluently off the Bangladesh spinners. Powell,
initially subdued, shifted gears after reaching his half-century and
went on to achieve his second three-figure score in Test cricket in the
company of his senior partner, who accumulated steadily and helped his
team lay the foundation for a big score on a batting-friendly track.
The session began with honours even, West Indies having lost three
wickets before lunch, but Powell and Chanderpaul batted determinedly,
unlike a couple who'd been dismissed in the morning. The focus was on
occupying the crease and seeing off the first few overs after the break
when Bangladesh were keen on building on the momentum they'd gained with
the wicket of Marlon Samuels at the stroke of lunch. The first seven
overs after lunch yielded no boundaries, but Bangladesh could contain
only for so long as the pair gradually began to open up, calmly, without
undue risks.
Powell brought up his half-century with a stylish pull off Shahadat
Hossain, bisecting the gap between deep square leg and fine leg. He'd
driven well down the ground throughout his innings and followed up with a
firm push through mid-off the same over. The bowling alternated between
pace and spin and then stayed with spin, as Mushfiqur Rahim began
shuffling his slow bowlers. There was turn but not much bounce, and
nothing significantly threatening for the two set batsmen to wary of.
Powell was strong off the back foot, punching through cover but also
stepped out to the spinners, lofting debutant Sohag Gazi over the
in-field and driving him through extra cover. Chanderpaul cashed in on
width, cutting well through point, and was typically workmanlike, moving
around the crease, sweeping, and tickling the ball to the fine-leg
boundary. The pair struck 11 fours in a space of eight overs. Powell
didn't show any nervousness as he approached his century, picking
singles at ease, and brought up the landmark - his second in his last
three Tests - with a paddle past fine leg.
Tall, solid in defence, Powell lacks flourish in his shot-making but is
an excellent timer of the ball and that was on plentiful display when
Bangladesh's seamers, particularly Shahadat, overpitched generously.
Extra cover, mid-off, mid-on and midwicket were his preferred scoring
areas; he drove Shahadat for three consecutive boundaries in his new
spell, and had displayed similar confidence in the morning as well. He
had reprieve when on 7, when he was caught at point after the ball
ricocheted off the silly-point fielder's helmet, which, according to the
rules, does not constitute a wicket.
The first couple of hours were memorable for offspinner Gazi, who
overcame the worst-possible initiation into Test cricket to walk back
successful at the break. He had an immediate role to play when asked to
bowl the first over of the Test. The batsman he was bowling to couldn't
care less about the significance of the moment. Chris Gayle greeted Gazi
into Test cricket with a massive six over long-on off the first ball, a
moment he may forget but the debutant will be condemned to remember all
his life. If that wasn't enough, he launched him for another six off
the fourth ball of an over that went for 18.
Rahim, however, didn't flinch and continued with Gazi, who soon had the
last laugh. Gayle was in an attacking mood, having struck consecutive
fours through the off side off Shahada in the fourth over, and took a
chance against Gazi with a long-off in place. The ball was flighted
towards middle and Gayle tried to go inside out, didn't get the desired
elevation and holed out. Gazi had won the contest, and repaid his
captain's faith.
Gazi had a role to play in each of the three dismissals before lunch. He
also got rid of Darren Bravo and caught Marlon Samuels at deep square
leg; both batsmen had built promising stands with Powell, but it was
their most experienced team-mate who ultimately went the distance with
the centurion.
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