Bangladesh Achieves Historic Test Victory Over Pakistan in Dhaka

Bangladesh Secures First Home Test Win Against Pakistan

In a groundbreaking achievement, Bangladesh celebrated their inaugural home Test victory against Pakistan, triumphing by 104 runs in the first match of the two-Test series held at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Tuesday.

While defending a target of 268 runs, Bangladesh dismissed Pakistan for 163 in their second innings, taking a 1-0 lead in the series.

This win is a significant milestone for Bangladesh in Test cricket, marking their third consecutive victory over Pakistan. Earlier, they had achieved a clean sweep against Pakistan in a two-match Test series in 2024.

With this victory, Bangladesh has ascended to sixth place in the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 standings, boasting a points percentage of 44.44, surpassing both Pakistan and England, as reported by the ICC.

Conversely, Pakistan has dropped from fifth to seventh place, now holding a points percentage of 33.33 after two losses and one win in their first three matches of the cycle, placing them ahead of England and the West Indies.

In their first innings, Bangladesh scored 413 runs and declared their second innings at 240/9. Pakistan responded with 386 runs in their first innings but fell short in their chase during the fourth innings.

Bangladesh's captain, Najmul Hossain Shanto, played a pivotal role in this victory, earning the Player of the Match title for his century. He scored a notable 101 runs off 130 balls in the first innings and contributed 87 runs in the second innings.

Pakistan's resistance was led by Azan Awais, who scored a century in the first innings, while Mohammad Rizwan (59) and Salman Ali Agha (58) provided valuable support with half-centuries.

However, Bangladesh's bowlers dominated the final innings, ensuring a comfortable win on the fifth day.

Captain Shanto expressed immense pride in his team's performance following this historic win against Pakistan.

In his post-match comments, Shanto commended the collective effort of his players, noting that their hard work over recent months is beginning to yield results in Test cricket.

"I am very happy and proud of the team’s performance. We have been putting in a lot of effort over the last few months, and it’s gratifying to see it pay off. It’s a great experience, and I feel very proud of how we played," Shanto stated.

He emphasized that the team is gradually improving in Test cricket, which has been a key objective. Shanto also mentioned that they intended to bat first after winning the toss, confident in their bowling attack's ability to make an impact later in the match.

"We are steadily getting better at Test cricket, which has always been our goal. We planned to bat first because we believe in our quality bowling attack, and our preparation over the last few months supported that decision," he explained.

Discussing the decision to declare in the second innings, Shanto credited the bowling unit, which included Nahid Rana, Taskin Ahmed, and Taijul Islam. He acknowledged that batting was challenging early in the match and praised senior players Mominul Haque and Mushfiqur Rahim for their contributions.

"The reason for our declaration was our strong bowling attack. In these conditions, Rana, Taskin, and Taijul bowled exceptionally well, and I always consider what the team needs to succeed in every match. The first few hours of the first innings were tough, but Mominul bhai played brilliantly, and we executed good shots, especially from Mominul and Mushfiqur bhai," he added.

"Today we will celebrate this victory, and then we will assess the conditions in Sylhet and strategize for the next match," Shanto concluded.

Bangladesh is now set to focus on the second and final Test against Pakistan in Sylhet, which is scheduled to commence on May 16.