Ashwin, Sehwag give India edge

India 209 and 152 for 2 (Sehwag 55) need 124 to beat West Indies 304 and 180 (Chanderpaul 47, Sammy 42, Ashwin 6-47)

	I'll have five, and then some: R Ashwin during his match-turning spell in his debut Test © AFP Enlarge

 Ashwin's six wickets, which gave him the second-best match haul for an Indian debutant, and quick runs from Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Darren Sammy pulled the game in opposite directions to leave it in a state of delicate balance. India were left with 276 to get for a first win in seven Tests, which if managed would be their third-highest successful chase. Virender Sehwag then rudely shook the balance with his sixth half-century in chases, but Sammy pulled West Indies back with Sehwag's wicket, only for two highest run-getters in Test cricket and its fourth innings, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, to give India the edge with an assured partnership before stumps.

India had every reason to feel good about the chase: they had built some momentum, and only one of the 10 wickets to fall in the day was a direct consequence of the pitch's misbehaviour. The first session of the day, though, looked like the continuation of an exercise in making the Kotla pitch look brutish. India had started it yesterday, losing 10 wickets for 120 runs, and on this slow track with low but manageable bounce, West Indies found a way to lose four wickets in the first hour today. It could have been three wickets in the first three overs, but Ishant Sharma was denied one by the umpire and Ashwin failed to catch a half chance.

The beneficiaries, Kirk Edwards and Darren Bravo, added 27 for the fourth wicket. Edwards played positively, hitting three fours in the first four overs of spin, but for some reason he chose to leave alone a straight delivery to give Umesh Yadav his maiden Test wicket. More uncertain cricket followed. Bravo thrust his pad forward to Ashwin and was trapped by one that didn't turn as much as expected. Ashwin then cleaned up Marlon Samuels with one of his first carrom balls in Test cricket. He uses that variation regularly in limited-overs cricket, but had hardly done it on Test debut until he got through the defence of Samuels.

A familiar thorn in the side remained, though. Chanderpaul began with two fours off the first two balls he faced, using his wrists on both occasions to manipulate the off-side field. First he rolled them on the cut shot to beat the squarish third man, and then he pushed through a length ball, placing it to the left of point. Despite Carlton Baugh's careless dismissal, Chanderpaul kept scoring unaffected.

With an aggressive Sammy for company, Chanderpaul threatened serious damage. Ashwin, though, interrupted him three runs short of a fifty with an offbreak that didn't turn as much as he expected. It was a brave lbw decision by Rod Tucker, as this was bowled from over the wicket and pitched within the stumps, but proved to be correct because of the small degree of turn. Sammy, though, continued to exploit the open field sets for him. He found the gaps for couples, hit a four with the field up, and in the most Caribbean of fashions drove Ishant for a six even with the field back. It took a straight Ashwin delivery that stayed low to get rid of Sammy, the first signs of the pitch playing unmanageable tricks. Ravi Rampaul and Devendra Bishoo didn't throw it away, and added 23 for the last wicket.

Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir came out aggressive. A potentially game-changing moment arrived in the fourth over, when Sehwag was a touch early into a straight-drive, but Rampaul couldn't take the tough return catch to his right. India took 23 off the first four overs, but it would become challenging when pace was taken off.

Sammy did so as early as the fifth over, and the openers went into singles mode. Sehwag, though, didn't like the sight of Samuels' offspin that early in the innings, and drove him over extra cover for six. Even though Samuels came back with Gambhir's lbw, Sehwag continued to beat the slowness of the pitch. The fields were spread, the ball didn't come on, but Sehwag adjusted superbly to score behind square on the off side. The quicker balls he guided past slip, for the slower ones he arched back and used the wrists to impart power. Three of his five fours he hit there.

He did not hit everything behind square. He lofted Bishoo, the opposition's only specialist spinner, for a six over long-on in his first over. Quietly Dravid slipped into positive mode, too, driving two boundaries through midwicket and extra cover before Sehwag managed to reach a score of fifty in both innings of a match for only the fifth time in his career.

A typical slow-pitch dismissal followed when Sehwag chopped Sammy on. More control and interrogation was a natural expectation. Immediately West Indies bowled the first maiden of the innings. They could now have some control over where they bowled, but Tendulkar and Dravid remained resolute. Tendulkar avoided playing across the line, and made positive forward movements every time he could. Dravid scored only 17 off the last 73 balls he faced, and the partnership was worth only 57 off 25.5 overs, but the two were desperate to stay unbeaten in fading light, which they managed.

Just about. For two overs before stumps, running in classical Indian style, Dravid crossed the stumps without grounding his bat or his feet. A lazy bail and inconclusive replays saved him there, after which he berated himself. The reaction would have been much more severe had he been given out.

Majeed pleads guilty, points finger at Butt

Mazhar Majeed has pleaded guilty in the spot-fixing case© AFP Enlarge

Mazhar Majeed, the players' agent, came out with a series of astonishing disclosures while in the dock at Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday. Majeed, sitting in the dock next to co-conspirators Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, was seeking the sympathy of the judge through revealing as much of his involvement as possible to limit the length of his sentence having pleaded guilty at a pre-trial in September.

Majeed's lawyer Mark Milliken-Smith QC said he was first introduced to talk about fixing by Butt, a former Pakistan captain, over dinner during the 2009 Twenty20 World Cup in England. He also revealed he handed £77,000 over to the players from the £150,000 he received from an undercover News of the World reporter. The figures he was asked to distribute were: £2,500 to Amir, £10,000 to Butt and £65,000 to Mohammad Asif.

Asif was paid the larger amount to guarantee that he remained loyal to the fixing racket within the team and was not persuaded to go elsewhere. It is possible that the inference was that Asif could be lost to another fixing racket within the Pakistan team.

The barristers for Butt and Asif each requested that this new information be banned from release by the media, but the judge allowed it to be published but on the understanding that both Asif and Butt's legal team's denied these new claims.

Milliken-Smith addressed Justice Cooke post-lunch, after reporting restrictions were lifted regarding Majeed's involvement as a fixer in the spot-fixing scandal.

Butt and fast bowler Asif were found guilty of conspiring to cheat and conspiring to accept corrupt payments by a jury on Tuesday. They were joined by their former team-mate Amir on the 21st day of the trial, while almost 60 people were stuffed into Court No.4. Special room was made for excess media in a space next to the jury seats.

Milliken-Smith told the judge: "Majeed was having dinner with Butt during the Twenty20 World Cup in England. When having dinner Butt raised the subject, out of frustration, that other players were at it and gave examples of ownership of houses in Pakistan.

"How can X and Y players have these houses when they don't earn the same amount of money according to their (Pakistan Cricket Board) contract," Milliken-Smith went on, speaking on the behalf of Majeed. "He told Majeed that he could even tell when players were doing it during matches. Majeed was then shocked although he knew there were rumours pervading for some time that some players he knew were doing it."

No more was said then, but Majeed went out to see Pakistan during their Australian tour in January 2010. Majeed had lunch with Butt and another player and Butt again raised the subject of fixing. The other player questioned Butt whether Majeed could be trusted. These discussions were conducted after the Test series and before the one-day series, but there was no suggestion that any matches in Australia were fixed.

The same people met again in the West Indies during the 2010 World Twenty20 and during the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, but Milliken-Smith said no fixing occurred here and they all agreed to set up some fixes for the England tour, when Pakistan would be playing Australia and England.

In between the World Twenty20 and the Australian tour, Majeed visited Pakistan for the first time in 18 years to visit family and also to see players. He met with PCB officials for business reasons but also met again with Butt and the same other player, whom Milliken-Smith did not name. In Pakistan they agreed that they needed to recruit "a couple more players" into the fix.

The lawyer added, of Majeed's sentiments: "Nothing I say now can detract from the shame and regret that he feels in admitting his involvement.

"He wholly accepts by his plea of guilt that the course of his actions has had a devastating effect on not only cricket itself but on the confidence of many millions who play and watch the sport. He knows he has betrayed people who have played or watched cricket.

"He knows that he must be punished for what he has done…It took courage and remorse for Majeed to plead guilty. We hope that Majeed attracts the full credit for pleading guilty at the first opportunity.

Milliken-Smith added: "The publicity, the press attention and the intrusion into his family's lives is something he will regret for the rest of his life."

Majeed had pleaded guilty in the spot-fixing case before the trial started but that fact could not be reported till today due to court restrictions.

Butt, Amir and Asif were exposed by the now defunct British tabloid the News of the World in an undercover sting operation. Majeed, their former agent, was recorded by a secret camera claiming to have bribed Pakistan bowlers Amir and Asif to bowl no-balls at previously agreed moments during the Lord's Test. He was paid £150,000 to arrange a fix with the Pakistan team.

ACSU set to investigate more matches

More players are set to come under scrutiny during the ICC's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit's investigation© Getty Images Enlarge

The ICC's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) is set to launch its own investigation of Pakistan's tour of England in 2010 after the criminal trial into spot-fixing in London exposed more allegedly tainted matches. More players are set to come under scrutiny.

Recovered text messages exposed during the trial at Southwark Crown Court revealed four more Tests appear to have been affected by spot-fixing on the tour - not just the one at Lord's.

The ACSU has not been able to conduct much of an inquiry since the case brought against Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir meant that most or all of the evidence was held by the Crown and police. Once the trial is over, however, there will be a debriefing between British prosecution services and the ACSU on what can and cannot be disclosed to use in future cricket investigations.

Former captain Butt and fast bowler Asif were found guilty by a jury on Tuesday of two charges relating to the bowling of three pre-determined no-balls during the Lord's Test. Two of those no-balls were delivered by Amir and one by Asif. Amir, who had pleaded guilty before the trial began, will appear at a Newton Hearing at the end of this week.

The latest evidence is likely to be of interest to the ACSU as they were not granted access to it while the criminal case was ongoing. Evidence relating to the first Test against England at Trent Bridge, the second at Edgbaston and the third at The Oval was heard during the trial, though not in front of the jury, as all parties agreed it may impact on a fair trial for Butt and Asif. Evidence was also linked to the Lord's Test between Pakistan and Australia.

The text traffic recovered by Canadian police specialists from agent Mazhar Majeed's mobile phone connected Pakistan players such as Kamran Akmal and Amir to alleged spot-fixing and links with bookmakers, as well as suspicious conduct at the very least.

On July 12, the eve of the Lord's Test between Pakistan and Australia, Majeed received a text from a UK number thought to belong to an underground bookmaker which read: "Bro, just spoke to Sanjay. Bowling first, they should bowl in tandem first for at least first eight overs. Give away a minimum of 47 runs, in first 10 overs please." Shahid Afridi was the Pakistan captain for that Lord's Test, not Butt, but there is no inference that Afridi was involved in any wrongdoing.

On July 17, when Butt was given the captaincy after the resignation of Afridi, a text from a number belonging to a suspected Indian bookmaker read: "Congratulations on captaincy of Salman Butt". There is no evidence surrounding the second Test against Australia at Headingley, Butt's first as captain, which Pakistan won.

On July 28, the eve of the first Test between England and Pakistan at Trent Bridge, the same Indian number, code-named 'Raj', texted Majeed: "Got any idea of the wicket, looks like enough grass left?"

On July 29, the first day of the Nottingham Test, Majeed messaged 'Raj' saying: "It is hard to do this but they will try. Two edges gave away eight in first over today so not always in their hands. They will make sure they try though." He followed that up with: "If they do it they will want to be paid."

On July 30, day two of the Trent Bridge Test, Majeed texted a UK number suspected to be one of his bookmaker contacts. He said: "Boss, you can see they have done it." And later he said to the same contact: "Kamran's one will still be on if another wicket."

On the same day 'Raj' messaged Majeed: "I'm very shocked and speechless about what the boys have done today. I am not able to understand what they in store. At this rate they will ruin our lives. Despite my request - one run in last ball of 100th over - nothing happened."

Majeed replied: "I cannot explain boss. I'll find out tonight."

On August 5, the day before the second Test at Edgbaston, Majeed was in touch with an unknown Dubai number, again suspected to be an illegal bookmaker: "Are you ready to speak in 20 mins? Maz."

Then on the same day, the UK bookie messaged Majeed with: "Is your Pakistan man ready for a small one tomorrow?"

On August 6, the first day of the second Test at Edgbaston, there were several calls and texts from Majeed to an Indian number and also to a Dubai number. At 6pm, he texted 'Raj': "Is market on tomorrow, shall I prepare anything tomorrow?" The reply came: "Not tomorrow bro, position is not right."

On August 7, day two at Edgbaston, Majeed texted 'Raj': "Bro, now Butt is out, anything we do is far too risky, let's see the position on Day 4."

On August 17, the day before the Oval Test, Amir texted a number thought to belong to a Pakistani bookmaker at quarter past midnight: "Sending him bank details and asking why someone needed them at that time."

Amir then sent two texts to another number in Pakistan saying: "How much and what needs to be done?" Adding, "This is going to be too much." The Pakistan contact replied to Amir: "So in the first 3, bowl however you want, and the last 2, do 8 runs?"

On the same day, before the third Test, 'Raj' texted Majeed: "Umar Akmal - playing?" And Majeed instantly replied: "Yes. Malik not playing".

After midnight on August 18, the first day of the Oval Test, there were numerous texts and calls between 'Raj' and Majeed, plus calls between Majeed and Butt, according to the prosecution at the trial.

Butt's defence was that he would often discuss equipment with his agent Majeed or talk about dinner plans. Butt's legal team also produced a witness statement from a shop assistant at The Oval to say Butt did go to the shop at the ground to buy two pairs of trousers because he was not happy at how Majeed had not arranged for new trousers with Adidas.

After an eight- and a seven-minute call between 'Raj' and Majeed, 'Raj' messaged back: "Kami (Kamran Akmal) and Aamer (Amir) minimum 13 off first 3 overs after Kami gives an indication by change of gloves with no wkt. It starts from round of overs, say 35 or 40, whichever is first after they come in together. Next 7 overs, maximum 15 runs."

Afridi returns to Pakistan ODI squad

Shahid Afridi has returned to the Pakistan side after meeting with new PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf © Associated Press Enlarge

Shahid Afridi, the former Pakistan captain, has been included in the Pakistan squad for the ODIs and Twenty20 against Sri Lanka. Afridi recently came out of his self-imposed retirement following Zaka Ashraf's appointment as PCB chairman in place of Ijaz Butt. On the day he took office, Ashraf said he would meet with Afridi to discuss the situation and that he believed the allrounder still had plenty to offer the national side. The pair met earlier today and following the meeting, Afridi was back in the national side.

"I am ready to play cricket either as a player or captain," Afridi told reporters after his meeting with Ashraf. "I still have cricket left in me and a lot to offer for my country. It is always a privilege to lead the side but the captain has always been a scapegoat."

Afridi had retired in protest over the way he was treated by the PCB under Butt, following Pakistan's ODI series against the West Indies in April and May. A dispute between him and then coach Waqar Younis became public and Afridi was censured by the board and fined rupees 4.5 million ($52,300) for violating its code of conduct.

Allrounder Abdul Razzaq also returns to the squad after being dropped following Pakistan's World Cup semi-final loss to India. Razzaq missed out on Pakistan's tours of the West Indies and Zimbabwe, despite being under contract, and said he did not think his exclusion was justified given that he did not have enough opportunities to perform in the tournament.

The selectors have dropped Wahab Riaz after resting him for the tour of Zimbabwe, but Umar Gul returns to lead the attack. He will be backed up by Junaid Khan, who has impressed against Sri Lanka in the ongoing Test series, Aizaz Cheema, who has also done well since making his debut against Zimbabwe, and Sohail Tanvir.

The other major change is the selection of Sarfraz Ahmed as wicketkeeper in place of Adnan Akmal. Sarfraz has played nine one-dayers in his career, the last coming against Australia in Perth in January. The selectors had stuck with Adnan for the sake of stability, and had been concerned about Sarfraz's ability with the bat, but his domestic performances this season have convinced them to give him another shot. In four Quaid--e-Azam Trophy games, he has scored 388 runs at an average of 97.00, with two hundreds and a fifty.

Former captain and allrounder Shoaib Malik has retained his place despite struggling during the Zimbabwe series, where he averaged just 8.00 from three matches. Misbah-ul-Haq will captain the side, which will play five ODIs and one Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka, the first of which will be played on November 11.

Squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Umar Gul, Aizaz Cheema, Junaid Khan, Sohail Tanvir, Abdul Razzaq, Asad Shafiq

Butt, Asif found guilty on both charges

Salman Butt: guilty © Getty Images Enlarge

The jury in the spot-fixing trial has found Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif guilty, by a unanimous verdict, on the charge of 'conspiracy to cheat' and guilty by a 10-2 majority decision on the charge of 'conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments'.

The sentences will be pronounced by the judge, Justice Cooke, on Wednesday and Thursday; both players will remain on bail until then. The convictions - reached by the jury of the Southwark Crown Court in London after 16 hours and 56 minutes of debate - carry jail terms, with a maximum prison sentence for the acceptance of corrupt payments is seven years in jail, while 'conspiracy to cheat' carries a maximum two-year sentence.

On a historic day for cricket, the world also learnt that Mohammad Amir, the teenage Pakistani fast bowler, had pleaded guilty to the same two charges before the trial began; he will now be given a "Newton Hearing" to decide the quantum of punishment. It also emerged that the ACSU was set to investigate more matches on Pakistan's tour of England in 2010, when the incidents central to this case took place.

The verdicts were handed in almost four weeks after the trial started, on October 4. Butt, wearing a velvet jacket and shirt without a tie, showed no emotion as the verdicts were read out and stared at the jury stony-faced. An hour earlier, in a bitter twist of fate, his wife Gul Hassan was understood to have given birth to a second son back in Pakistan. Asif, wearing a grey winter coat in the dock, was equally unmoved and neither player said a word or made any obvious facial expression.

The jury were unable to reach a verdict on the "accepting corrupt payments" charge against Asif, and Justice Cooke immediately retired them to deliberate some more in case they could reach a verdict on that fourth charge, which they did after more than three more hours.

The unambiguous nature of the verdict was welcomed by the Crown Prosecution Service, which had pursued the case in court. "All I want to say that this is cheating pure and simple," Matt Horne of the CPS said. "They let down everyone that bought a ticket and they let down children when they were role models to those very children who are playing such a special game. I think we all look forward to this game being played in its truest spirit as we go forward from these types of issues. I also acknowledge the role that investigative journalism has played in this case."

Butt and Asif, along with Amir, were exposed by the now defunct British tabloid the News of the World in an undercover sting operation. Their former agent Mazhar Majeed was recorded by a secret camera predicting when no-balls would be delivered by the bowlers. The players have already been punished by the ICC after a disciplinary hearing in Doha, Qatar, earlier this year. Each was banned from the sport for at least five years. Butt received a further suspended five-year ban and Asif was handed a further two-year suspended sanction.

All three players have filed appeals against their bans at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Amir pleads guilty to spot-fixing

Mohammad Amir's lawyer said the fast bowler was pressured into spot-fixing © AFP Enlarge

Mohammad Amir, the Pakistan fast bowler, has pleaded guilty to spot-fixing during the Lord's Test against England in 2010. He said there was "extreme pressure" on him and cited threats to his place in the side if he did not participate in the fixing.

Amir gave his plea at the pre-trial at Southwark Crown Court on September 16, which had preceded the full trial attended by Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, who pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. Reporting restrictions under the United Kingdom's laws meant Amir's plea could not be published so as not to bias a jury ruling on the other two players.

All three players faced charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord's Test during which they allegedly conspired with agent Mazhar Majeed and other people unknown to bowl pre-planned no-balls. Butt and Asif were found guilty by a jury at the Southwark Crown Court on both counts on November 1.

Amir's basis of plea agreed by the prosecution was:

• The defendant's involvement was limited to the final Test match at Lord's between August 26 and 29, 2010.
• This was the defendant's first and only involvement and was, therefore, an isolated and one-off event.
• The defendant only became involved as a result of pressure (not amounting to physical threats) and influence, to the effect that, if he did not become involved, he would suffer serious professional implications to his future career.

"Amir wants to make it clear he wants to take full responsibility for what he did by bowling two deliberate no-balls," Amir's barrister Ben Emmerson QC said at the pre-trial. "This vulnerable 18-year-old boy, as he was then, was subjected to extreme pressure from those upon whom he should have been able to rely. He recognises the damage he has caused Pakistan cricket and he wishes to do his best to put that right."

Prosecution evidence, however, suggested that rather than being an innocent, naïve rookie who was taken advantage of, Amir seemed a willing conspirator, with text messages of fixing talk sent to two different Pakistan numbers that were recovered by police.

Of further significance was Amir's basis of plea - he owned up only to fixing the two no-balls at Lord's. This was questioned by the judge, Justice Cooke, because there was evidence to be presented by the prosecution that showed suspicious behaviour connected to other matches that summer, chiefly the third Test at The Oval.

On August 17, the eve of the Oval Test, Amir texted a Pakistani number with his bank details and asked why they were needed at that time.

On the same day, Amir had a conversation by text with a Pakistani unknown. It went: "How much and what needs to be done?" Then: "This is going to be too much mate." The Pakistani unknown said in one: "So in first three, bowl however you want, and in the last two, do eight runs?" These messages were translated from Urdu and were thought to be a repetition of instructions he had received at some point.

When the police raids were carried out on the Saturday evening of the Lord's Test at the Marriott Regents Park Hotel, Amir sent a text to another Pakistan number from the phone of Azhar Majeed, the older brother of Mazhar, to say: "Amir here, don't call my phone, ICC-police have taken my phone, are you able to delete those calls you made to me? If you can do it okay, don't reply." During the trial, the prosecution also accused Azhar Majeed of being involved in fixing matches.

Amir was also "well at it" - as chief prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee QC put it - before and during the Lord's Test with Mazhar Majeed. There were 65 forms of contact between Butt and Majeed, and Amir and Majeed in the 36 hours leading up to the Lord's Test. Asif was not in touch then.

The jury watched footage on TV sets in the court of Amir's behaviour after his no-balls. He repeatedly checked his spikes and Butt placed sawdust around the crease. Jafferjee called it "a performance". Two experts said the likelihood of correctly predicting when three no-balls would be delivered had a probability of a one in 1.5 million chance.

Amir was the Player of the Series for the Tests in England, having taken five-wicket hauls in his last two matches. His involvement in fixing cost him an ICC Emerging Player of the Year nomination.

Tamim fights but West Indies still favourites

Bangladesh 231 and 164 for 3 (Tamim 82*, Mushfiqur 33*) need another 344 runs to beat West Indies355 and 383 for 5 dec (Bravo 195, Edwards 86, Chanderpaul 59*)

	Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Darren Bravo added 143 in 29.4 overs © AFP Enlarge

On the most productive day of this Test series, aggression as well as restraint with the bat were in plentiful supply from both teams but they differed significantly in their timing of those approaches. West Indies got it right, subdued at the start of the day and attacking after lunch to amass a massive lead, the only downside being the sight of Darren Bravo lying flat on the ground ruing a missed double-century. Bangladesh did the opposite; they motored along at the start of an improbable chase, not having learnt much from their top-order capitulation in the first innings, and lost early wickets. Though Tamim Iqbal steadied them, after belatedly realising the need for caution, West Indies remain favourites to take the Test with seven wickets to grab on a full day's play.

Attacking batting makes for entertaining cricket and the Bangladesh line-up is packed with attractive stroke-makers. If there was anything to be learnt from their performance in the first innings, though, it was that sustaining aggression for an extended period of time is a major challenge in Test cricket. The opening seamers Fidel Edwards and Kemar Roach bowled too short often but, despite their poor lengths, the Bangladesh batsmen were only too happy to keep them interested.

The pitch looked far from threatening and showed no major signs of wear and tear - Devendra Bishoo and Marlon Samuels got the odd delivery to turn and bounce sharply but not with enough frequency to send tremors within the Bangladesh camp. Also encouraging for the hosts will be the trend of high scores in the fourth innings at the venue - two scores of over 200 have been chased down with few wickets lost and Bangladesh once scored 413 in a losing cause. Whether Tamim and the middle order can summon the determination to save the game will have many doubters, and remains to be seen.

Sensing early that leaving deliveries outside off wasn't part of the top-order's plan, as he'd done early in the first innings where he bagged a five-for, Fidel Edwards persisted with an off-stump line. The presence of two slips and a gully should have prompted circumspection, instead the openers kept those fielders that much more vigilant. Off the first ball of Fidel Edwards' second over, Tamim slapped one to point where Samuels dropped a straightforward chance. There was hope again when Imrul Kayes crashed him through the covers four balls later. The next ball was in the channel outside off and Kayes couldn't help pushing at it, and offered a low catch to Kirk Edwards at slip.

The temptation to dole out short stuff continued when Shahriar Nafees upper-cut Fidel Edwards over the slips; Roach was dealt the same way by Tamim, who also survived an inside-edge while pushing away from his body. The introduction of Darren Sammy brought about a change in lengths and Nafees, overcome by an instinct to drive the ball, played a pitched-up delivery straight back to the bowler, who showed sharp reflexes in bending down quickly to take a tough catch.

The arrival of Raqibul Hasan brought with it a semblance of stability to the innings. He shunned aggression, held out one end assuredly, defended well against Sammy who stuck to a tight line and pinched singles off the spinners, working them around the in-field. The solidity rubbed off on Tamim, who toned down considerably and was fortunate to have Raqibul caution him when he appeared to display an incorrigible urge to break free.

Tamim stepped out to Bishoo to launch him over his head for a four and a six, and almost offered a catch to mid-on on the third attempt before a polite reprimand from the other end restored some sense. It was ironic then that Raqibul was almost caught while trying to late-cut a delivery with a slip in place, and was dismissed the very next ball poking at a quicker delivery from Samuels that spun in a hint.

At 124 for 3 with close to an hour left, there was more room for damage but some fluent, and assured, batting from Mushfiqur Rahim together with a much-tempered Tamim saw Bangladesh through to the close. The pair punched gloves in satisfaction at stumps but another daunting day remained ahead of them.

The West Indies batsmen didn't want any hiccups in the morning and progressed slowly to keep wickets in store for a blast after lunch. Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who eased to a half-century, triggered the acceleration with three fours in a Nasir Hossain over before the break, and Bravo smashed a straight six off the same bowler when play resumed. As he moved closer to a double-ton, Bravo launched Suhrawadi Shuvo into the stands to reach 195. An attempt to get to the landmark with a slog-sweep the next ball ended in failure, personal disappointment and a declaration, as he top-edged a catch to Mushfiqur.