Bangladesh fight back in final session after Jomel Warrican three-for puts West Indies in front

The West Indies bowlers did well to keep Bangladesh in check for the most part of the opening day of the first Test in Chattogram before the home side wrested back some control in the final session. After being 140 for 4 at tea, Bangladesh added another 102 for the loss of one more wicket in the evening to finish the day on 242 for 5, the unbroken sixth-wicket stand between Shakib Al Hasan and Liton Das worth 49. Left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican was the most successful bowler for West Indies, picking up three wickets.

The day started with Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel struggling to get their lengths right and erring consistently on the fuller side after Bangladesh opted to bat on a placid pitch. The first ball of the match, a half-volley from Roach, was driven through the covers for four by Shadman Islam. Two overs later, Roach presented a similar opportunity to Tamim Iqbal and the batsman didn't miss out.

The lack of assistance from the pitch meant West Indies were a bit conservative with their field placements too - Gabriel got a couple to bounce a bit, but the slow nature of the pitch meant there wasn't enough sting in them. Given those conditions, Iqbal would be disappointed with himself - he was on 9 when a Roach delivery came in from the around-the-wicket angle and found the gap between bat and pad to clatter into the stumps.

Like the two openers, Najmul Hossain Shanto too opened his account with a boundary off Roach. Islam and he batted calmly and added 43 for the second wicket before a misunderstanding led to Shanto's run-out. Islam worked Kyle Mayers towards the right of fine leg and called for two but Shanto hesitated before taking off. Roach fired in the throw to wicketkeeper Joshua Da Silva, who relayed it to the bowler to catch Shanto well short.

West Indies made further inroads in the second session as Warrican picked up the wickets of Mominul Haque and Islam in a passage of play where both teams looked happy to play defensive cricket.

The West Indies bowlers were much tighter with their lines and lengths after lunch. They also deployed in-out fields, which meant that on the rare occasions when the bowlers presented scoring opportunities, the Bangladesh batsmen couldn't really cash in. Except for the one Mayers over, when the bowler lost his length and gave away two easy boundaries, the runs didn't come easy for the hosts. Their approach of not trying to rotate the strike enough also didn't help.

That reduced the contest to a battle of attrition, in which Haque was the first to blink. The Bangladesh captain skipped down the pitch against Rahkeem Cornwall and Warrican only to miscue the shots over mid-on. The next time he tried to do it, against Warrican, the ball dipped, Haque failed to keep his attempted whip down, and John Campbell held on to a juggling catch at short midwicket.

Islam brought up a measured half-century before falling to Warrican in the penultimate over before tea. The batsman went for the sweep only to miss and be struck in front of middle and leg. He had a chat with his partner, Mushfiqur Rahim, about whether to review or not, but decided against it. Had Islam reviewed it, the decision would have been overturned as replays showed the ball was spinning past the leg stump.

At that point, Bangladesh were placed precariously on 134 for 4. That, however, didn't deter Rahim and Shakib to bat positively in the final session. The first four overs after tea produced 20 runs as the two experienced batsmen hit four boundaries. They didn't hesitate in taking quick singles either and suddenly West Indies were just looking to plug the flow of runs. With the ball getting soft, West Indies opened up the field and the singles were available easily. But Shakib and Rahim were alert to quick singles as well. When Kraigg Brathwaite brought himself on, Rahim was his usual adventurous self, going deep in the crease to manufacture the desired length and even scooping him to the fine-leg boundary.

Shakib and Rahim had added 59 for the fifth wicket when Warrican dismissed Rahim against the run of play. Having moved to 38, Rahim looked to defend Warrican only to edge to first slip where Cornwall took a low catch.

Das could have been on his way back soon after but debutant Nkrumah Bonner failed to latch on to a sharp chance at forward short leg off Cornwall. That was on the last ball of the 80th over and West Indies opted for the new ball straightaway. That worked in Bangladesh's favour, though, as they took 40 runs from the last ten overs of the day, with Das scoring 32 of them.