Bravo misses double century

MIRPUR, Bangladesh (CMC):

West Indies' bid for victory in the second Test against Bangladesh hit a snag yesterday after Darren Bravo, who set things up, narrowly missed a double-hundred.

Bravo was dismissed for 195 and fellow left-hander Shivnarine Chanderpaul was unbeaten on 59, allowing West Indies to declare on 383 for five in their second innings about an hour before tea on the third day at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium, setting Bangladesh a highly improbable, if not impossible victory target of 508.

Bravo finished his near 7¹/²-hour innings with 12 fours and five sixes from 297 balls. He added 143 for the fifth wicket either side of lunch with Chanderpaul, whose knock included six fours from 79 balls, after night-watchman Kemar Roach fell in the first hour.

The visitors, however, ran into Tamim Iqbal in a rampant mood. The left-handed opener was unbeaten on 82 and his captain Mushfiqur Rahim was not out on 33, carrying the home team to 164 for three at the close.

West Indies first innings bowling hero Fidel Edwards grabbed an early scalp, when Imrul Kayes was caught at slip for nine in the third over.

Wickets, however, did not come thick and fast for West Indies like in the Bangladesh first innings, as Tamim anchored the batting, sharing defiant stands either side of tea with Shahriar Nafees, Raqibul Hasan, and Mushfiqur before stumps were drawn.

Earlier, Bravo continued merrily from where he left off the previous day and seemed almost unstoppable.

His dismissal, caught behind, gave Suhrawadi Shuvo the last of his three wickets for 73 runs from 26.3 overs and prompted the declaration.

Bravo reached 150 in the last over before lunch, when he crunched Suhrawadi through mid-wicket for his 10th four.

Batting with the declaration clearly in mind Chanderpaul, too, started to show greater enterprise, reaching his 50 from 70 balls in style with a pull through square leg off Shahadat for his fifth boundary.

Five overs later, Bravo's fun came to a screeching halt, when he tried to swipe Suhrawadi for another six to reach the 200-run mark, top-edged and gave a catch to Mushfiqur.