Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam. (Source – Pakistan Cricket)
Pakistani wicketkeeper, Mohammad Rizwan, hung on to a spectacular catch to get rid of Zakir Hasan on Day 3 of the first Test against Bangladesh. Carrying on from an overnight score of 27/0, the Bangladeshi openers looked set for a solid stand between themselves, despite the Pakistanis being as frugal as a monk in terms of providing any sort of loose deliveries for the batters to capitalize on.
The spectacular grab was off the penultimate delivery of the 17th over of the innings, when a back-of-a-length delivery by Naseem Shah from over-the-wicket caught the outside edge of Zakir’s willow to fly behind towards the direction of Babar Azam who was ready to pouch it while positioned at first slip. The real action unravelled as Rizwan sprung to his left to dive full-stretch to hold on to a screamer of a grab with his left hand.
Absolute ripper of a catch! 😲
The @iMRizwanPak 𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 gives @iNaseemShah his first wicket of the day 👏#PAKvBAN | #TestOnHai pic.twitter.com/gqwVCrz6xl
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) August 23, 2024
Notably, it was Sarfaraz Khan who stepped onto the field to replace Rizwan for a brief bit from overs 7.4 to 12, due to the latter suffering from a few cramps yesterday.
The ripper of a snare was not the only moment of brilliance displayed by Rizwan in the ongoing game. He batted splendidly to register his highest score in the red-ball format of 171* off 239 deliveries, an innings worthy of immense praise. It was his third Test century, with the last one coming way back in 2022 against Australia in Karachi.
Also Read: ‘Mohammad Rizwan was clearly told an hour before’ – Pakistan vice captain Saud Shakeel on denying wicketkeeper double ton due to declaration
Pakistan ultimately declared on 448/6, in a bid to unleash a burst of precise new-ball bowling to the openers. However, Zakir and Shadman Islam played out the 12 overs on Day 2 with proficient ease.