The second four-day game between Bangladesh A and Pakistan A was evenly poised after a see-saw day at Darwin in Australia.
Captain Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Aich Mollah hit their second straight half-century in the match, guiding Bangladesh A to 216 before being all out in their second innings.
The total helped them set a 296-run target for Pakistan A to win the game. However, the second-string Pakistan team reached 136-4 at stumps on Day three, leaving the game nicely poised, reports BSS.
Both teams now have an equal chance to win the game with Bangladesh A needing six wickets while Pakistan requiring 160 runs more.
Bangladesh A, which is originally the High Performance (HP) team of Bangladesh, once again failed to show the required resolve in the batting. But the exception was Joy and Aich Mollah.
Joy added 65 runs in the second innings after scoring 69 in the first innings. Mollah who made 55 runs in the first innings, played a masterful 58-run knock.
Resuming the day at 84-3, Joy and Mollah looked solid in their approach but Mohammad Ali broke through, rattling the stump of Joy who hit 11 boundaries in his 118-ball-knock.
Mohammad Ali gave Pakistan A, which is originally named as Pakistan Shaheens, double delight when he handed Shadman Islam an eight-ball-duck.
Shahadat Hossain Dipu joined Mollah to give the side further solidity. However after sharing 63-run for the sixth wicket, Shahadat was dismissed by giving a return catch to Khurram Shahzad after he scored 33.
Mollah single-handedly led the side past 200 with the other batters failing to give him adequate support. He was the ninth batter out after smashing nine fours in his 123-ball-knock.
Mohammad Ali had figures of 6-63 after going wicket-less in the first innings while Khurram Shahzad took 3-67.
Pakistan openers Haseebullah Khan and Shahibzada Farhan gave the side an excellent start by sharing 96-run but Bangladesh made a strong comeback to leave the side evenly poised at the end.
Skipper Joy who bowled occasionally gave the side a breakthrough when he dismissed his opposite number Farhan for 68. Fast bowler Rejaur Rahman Raja who ended the day with 2-47, then struck twice in his consecutive overs, getting rid of Kamran Ghulam and Umar Amin, both for duck.
Hasan Murad (1-25) gave Bangladesh further delight with the wicket of Irfan Khan who made 15.
Haseebullah Khan was batting on 44 with Tayyab Tahir on 4 at the close of the day.
