Joy’s resilience earns Bangladesh a hard fought draw against West Indies A
Mahmudul Hasan Joy’s resilient century secured a draw for the Bangladesh A team in the final day of their third four-day match against West Indies A at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Joy remained unbeaten on 114 off 268 balls with Shahadat Hossain unbeaten on 20 at the other end as the hosts reached 306-4 chasing a target of 461 runs.
Kevin Sinclair struck thrice for the tourists while Akeem Jordan claimed one wicket but Joy’s seven-hour-long marathon innings ensured the match ended in a draw.
Bangladesh A resumed the day’s play on 47-0, needing an improbable 414 runs on the final day for victory.
Openers Joy and Zakir Hasan were clearly not thinking about a win as they spent most of the morning session blocking and leaving the ball.
Sinclair broke the 93-run opening stand by dismissing Zakir for 43. He then put Bangladesh A in a spot of bother by trapping former Bangladesh Test captain Mominul Haque (five) leg-before wicket to reduce the home side to 107-2.
A few more wickets in quick succession could’ve spelt disaster for Bangladesh A.
But Joy didn’t allow that to happen as he then formed a 53-run stand with Saif Hassan (38) and a 117-run partnership with Yasir Ali (67) for the next two wickets which all but ensured that the hosts won’t lose the match.
Joy completed a well-deserved century in the final session and a few overs later both teams shook hands and accepted the draw.
Earlier, West Indies A took a massive 240-run lead in the first innings. The tourists posted 445 runs in the first innings after winning the toss and in reply the hosts got rolled over for just 205.
West Indies A then extended their lead to well over 400 before declaring their second innings on 220-5. But in the end, Bangladesh A managed to avoid a defeat.
With the result, West Indies A take the three-match series 1-0.
They had earlier won the second four-day match by three wickets after the series opener ended in a draw.