Chennai– Backed by Bangladesh's lower-order, who eventually helped India reach 376 in the first innings, the hosts dismissed them for just 149, swelling their lead to 308 and extending their dominance over the visitors on the second day of the first Test at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.
India could add only 37 runs to their overnight total in the first hour against the second new ball as their first innings ended in 91.2 overs on the day when 17 wickets fell. In reply, fast-bowling Jasprit Bumrah picked 4-50 in a relentless and searing bowling show to dismiss Bangladesh cheaply and help India take a 227-run lead.
As he does mostly, Bumrah was in a different realm to be the standout bowler for India. The two other match-winners for India were Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, and Ravindra Jadeja who complemented him by keeping the pressure on to take two scalps each as Bangladesh crumbled in the face of baptism by fire from an exceptional Indian bowling attack.
India elected not to enforce follow-on and at stumps reached 81/3 in 23 overs of their second innings. And with Shubman Gill on 33 and Rishabh Pant on 12, the only task they will have is to bat Bangladesh out of the game after another day that was sheer brilliance at Chepauk.
Bangladesh resumed Day Two by taking the second new ball and continued to bowl to a good length area. Ravichandran Ashwin looked to get India's innings going from 339/6 with a thick edge going over the slip cordon for four. Taskin struck in his second over of the day by shaping the ball into Ravindra Jadeja and taking a faint edge on his tentative poke straight to the keeper.
Jadeja's dismissal on 86 ended his 199-run partnership with Ashwin, who missed his century by 14 runs. Akash threw the kitchen sink at the balls towards him to hit four boundaries, including being dropped by Shakib Al Hasan on eight, before his slog off Taskin took a top-edge and was caught by mid-off for 17 off 30 balls.
Taskin got his third of the day when Ashwin did not time his drive well and gave a catch to mid-off to fall for 113 off 133 balls and got a standing ovation from the sparse Chepauk crowd.
Mahmud wrapped up India's innings within an hour into the second day of the Test when Bumrah edged to third slip to complete successive five-wicket hauls in Test matches. The pacer also became the first Bangladeshi bowler to claim a five-wicket haul in Test matches on Indian soil.
Bumrah struck in the very first over as he changed the angle to come around the wicket and get one to nip back in and go past a shouldering Shadman Islam to hit the top of the off-stump. With Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj bowling attacking lengths, there was no room to breathe easy for the Bangladeshi batters.
In the last over before lunch, Akash castled Zakir Hasan with a nip-backer coming in from wide of the crease to knock down the middle stump. The very next ball saw him castling Mominul Haque with a nip-backer going past the batter's forward defence to hit off-stump.
Just after lunch, Siraj got a ball to hold its line and take the outside edge off Najmul Hossain Shanto's bat straight to third slip. In the next over, Bumrah bombarded Mushfiqur Rahim with questions before getting him to poke to second slip.
Liton Das and Shakib Al Hasan added to a 51-run stand for the sixth wicket as nothing much seemed to be happening with the ball, pulling out sumptuous drives off Bumrah, Siraj and Akash before Shakib latched on loose deliveries from Ashwin and Jadeja to get more boundaries.
But in a flash of blood moment, Das tried to scoop off an outside off-stump ball from Jadeja, but it took the top edge to substitute fielder Dhruv Jurel at deep backward square leg. In Jadeja's next over, Shakib tried to reverse-sweep, but it deflected off his shoe and Rishabh Pant ran forward to take an easy catch.
Mahmud and Mehidy Hasan Miraz hung around for hitting three boundaries before Bumrah got the former to poke at an outside off delivery and the thick outside edge was grabbed by second slip at the stroke of tea.
Within a few overs left in the last session, Bumrah produced another corker of a yorker that shook the middle and leg stumps of Taskin. It was not long before a late cut from the same batsman saw Nahid chop onto his stumps off Siraj to leave Bangladesh at a run below 150.
India got going with three boundaries in the second innings, but captain Rohit Sharma was going cheaply as Taskin extracted an outside edge and flew to the hands of the third slip. Yashasvi Jaiswal constantly tried playing at deliveries outside off-stump and nicked behind one off Rana.
Gill was sound enough with his back-foot punches, pull and sweep to mop up quick boundaries. But India lost Virat Kohli, who was trapped lbw while trying to clip through the on-side off Mehidy.
Interestingly, replays had a feather edge on ultra edge that made many wring their hands what may have been the situation had Kohli gone for the review. Pant swept Shakib Al Hasan for four and followed it up by dancing down the pitch to slam a six over long-on fence to ensure India's lead crossed 300 till the second day's play came to a close.
Brief scores:
India 376 all out in 91.2 overs (R. Ashwin 113, Ravindra Jadeja 86; Hasan Mahmud 5-83, Taskin Ahmed 3-55) and 81/3 in 23 overs (Shubman Gill 33 not out; Nahid Rana 1-12, defeat Bangladesh by 308 runs over Bangladesh 149 in 47.1 overs (Shakib Al Hasan 32; Jasprit Bumrah 4-50; Mohd Siraj 2-30, Akash Deep 2-19, Ravindra Jadeja 2-19).
