Afghanistan’s seamers took nine wickets to bowl Bangladesh out for 346, then Rahmat Shah’s unbeaten 84 and Abdul Malik’s 62 took them to 211 for 4 at stumps on day two in Abu Dhabi, 135 runs behind with six wickets in hand.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates: Bangladesh began the second morning on 317 for 8 and added only 29 runs before the innings closed. By stumps, Afghanistan had answered with 211 for 4 and still had six wickets in hand in a one-off Test that remains finely balanced.
Bangladesh’s tail runs out of overs
Bangladesh were all out for 346 in 92.3 overs at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium. Tanzid Hasan, who made his maiden Test century in Darwin in August, top-scored with 83 off 71 balls. Shadman Islam added 67 and Litton Das 53, while Mominul Haque made 39 and Najmul Hossain Shanto 29. Nayeem Hasan finished unbeaten on 35. Mushfiqur Rahim fell for a seven-ball duck.
Afghanistan’s seamers did the damage, taking nine of the ten wickets. Mohammad Saleem finished with 4 for 82 and Yamin Ahmadzai with 3 for 79. Ismat Alam returned 2 for 20 from 12.4 overs, five of them maidens.
Afghanistan lose four, then stabilise
The reply was not smooth. Sediqullah Atal made 17 and Shahidullah 20, and Hashmatullah Shahidi was stumped for a two-ball duck, leaving Afghanistan 4 down. Atal had survived a caught-behind appeal early in the innings that Bangladesh chose not to review, although replays suggested he had edged it.
Abdul Malik steadied the innings with 62 before he fell, and Rahmat Shah then took charge. Rahmat reached stumps unbeaten on 84 from 186 balls, the anchor of the recovery.
An unbroken stand ends the day
Rahmat and Ikram Alikhil, unbeaten on 26 from 91 balls, shared an unbroken 72 for the fifth wicket to close the day. Bangladesh’s spinners could not break them: Mehidy Hasan Miraz took 1 for 37 from 20 overs and Taijul Islam went wicketless, conceding 44 from 21.
Afghanistan have faced 79 overs, which means Bangladesh can take the second new ball after one more over. Afghanistan need another 136 runs to take a first-innings lead, and with Rahmat still at the crease they begin day three in a good position to get it.
Stumps, day two: Bangladesh 346 all out (Tanzid Hasan 83, Shadman Islam 67, Litton Das 53; Mohammad Saleem 4/82, Yamin Ahmadzai 3/79, Ismat Alam 2/20). Afghanistan 211/4 (Rahmat Shah 84*, Abdul Malik 62, Ikram Alikhil 26*), trailing by 135 runs.
Match: One-off Test, Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi, Saturday 10 October 2026.
