Pakistan mounted an excellent comeback in the ongoing first Test against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi. The first of the two Tests showed Bangladesh winning the toss and choosing to bat first.
And Bangladeshi bowlers proved the decision correct as Pakistan was reduced to 16/3 before Saim Ayub (56) and Saud Shakeel added 98 runs for the 4th wicket. But the best performance came from Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan, who added 240 runs for the 5th wicket.
Saud Shakeel made 141 runs with 9 fours, while Mohammad Rizwan was left stranded on 171* with 11 fours and 3 sixes when Pakistan captain Shan Masood declared the innings. Notably, Rizwan was just 29 runs short of his maiden double-century in Tests.
Pakistan made 448/6d in their first innings. In response, Bangladesh scored 73/2 in their first innings as of writing this piece.
Fans took to social media to voice their anger that Rizwan was denied the unusual milestone of a double century. Many think Masood should have given Rizwan more time.
Saud Shakeel addressed the team's decision at a post-day press conference.
"See, as far as Rizwan bhai's double century is concerned, I don't think there was any haste in deciding to declare the innings," Shakeel stated. "Rizwan bhai was clearly told an hour before that we would be declaring at this point in time. So, he had an idea of when we would declare. He was told we would try to get near 450 before declaring,” Shakeel said.
Shakeel highlighted that the decision was purposeful and communicated in advance. He emphasized the value of the team's standing over individual accomplishments.
"We wanted to ensure we had enough runs on the board to put pressure on Bangladesh and set ourselves up for a win," Shakeel added.
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