Lorcan Tucker, who began the third day of the Dhaka Test on 27 for 4, led Ireland’s defence against Bangladesh.
As a result of his 108, which included two sizable partnerships to keep them in the game, Tucker became the second Irishman to hit a century on Test debut and the sixth wicketkeeper to do so. When everyone anticipated that the test would end early on the third day, Ireland finished on 286 for 8.
Although the visitors’ 131-run advantage may not seem substantial, they have done enough to raise concerns in Bangladesh’s minds. At the Shere Bangla National Stadium, where they haven’t triumphed since 2020, the host team has a poor track record of chasing down opponents.
The best bowler once more was Taijul Islam, who now has nine wickets for the game. Shakib, though, delivering just six overs on the day, when he appeared healthy and played all day in the field, was an odd choice.
Tucker did a great job of defying Bangladesh’s spinners. The little audience applauded the young batter’s century as he celebrated reaching the hundred. As Ireland formed a string of partnerships, his 111-run stand with Andy McBrine for the seventh wicket kept Bangladesh at bay for 28.3 overs.
The visitors’ top order collapsed in 6.5 overs on the second evening, leaving them on 27 for 4 as the day began. These four wickets were split by Shakib and Taijul, who both appeared ably supported.
However, late on the second day, PJ Moor and Tector dismissed them for 10.1 overs, and they continued in the same manner on the third morning.
In the second over of the day, Litton Das dismissed Tector for nine runs, but that was the only opportunity that was lost. Tector and Moor shared the fifth wicket for 25.4 overs, adding only 38 runs, but their partnership set the tone for the rest of the day.
At the conclusion of the first hour, Moor was defeated by the one shot he took away from his body and edged Shoriful Islam.
The tempo was accelerated by Tector and Tucker with some excellent strokes. Tector then smashed a cover drive off Shoriful after Tucker opened the scoring with a reverse-swept four from Mehidy Hasan Miraz.
After playing two pulls against Ebadot Hossain, Tucker launched Khaled with a flick over midwicket. Before being bowled out for 56, Tector had hit seven fours and a six in his 159-ball innings. His final boundary was a straight drive.
The 24 overs of their partnership added up to 72 runs at a run rate of three. The momentum was carried forward by McBrine and Tucker, giving Ireland the push, it needed.
In the middle session, Ireland scored 106, during which Tucker hit his 100th run with a cover drive off Taijul. After driving Ebadot madly to cover, Tucker was finally able to escape. After making the catch, Shoriful let forth a mighty roar.
Ireland, however, had not yet finished. By scoring another 31 runs for the eighth wicket with Mark Adair, McBrine added to his previous fifty-run score.
Even the way the day came to an end—with Graham Hume and McBrine batting out the final 8.3 overs as the ninth and tenth wickets, respectively—will inspire Ireland to take on Bangladesh the following day.