DHAKA: Mehidy Hasan Miraz claimed five wickets to give Bangladesh a slender lead after Pakistan debutant Azan Awais hit 103 on a rain-hit third day of the first Test on Sunday. Pakistan made 386 all out in response to Bangladesh&#39;s first innings total of 413 in Dhaka. Bangladesh closed the day on 7-0 in their second innings to increase their lead to 34 runs, after bad light ended play with Mahmudul Hasan Joy unbeaten on two and Shadman Islam yet to score. The left-handed Azan, who resumed on 85, completed his hundred off 153 balls to become the 14th Pakistani and sixth player overall to score a century on debut against Bangladesh. He became pace bowler Taskin Ahmed&#39;s 50th Test wicket after captain Najmul Hossain Shanto caught the opener at slip. &quot;It&#39;s a very blessed feeling for me because I know it&#39;s my debut match and I performed really well for my country,&quot; a visibly moved Azan said. &quot;When I was going in to bat I was a little nervous, but I performed very well for my team.&quot; Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals but kept coming back as Abdullah Fazal, another debutant, scored 60, Salman Agha made 58 and Mohammad Rizwan chipped in with 59. Rizwan and Agha made 119 for the sixth wicket, one of three century partnerships for the visitors, before rain wiped out a large portion of the afternoon session. The pitch offered more assistance to the spinners when play resumed and Mehidy exploited the conditions to perfection, with Pakistan bowled out in 100.3 overs. Mehidy, who bowled 38 overs of his off-spin, was rewarded for his patience. &quot;On a true wicket like this, as a spinner my mindset is that I will not get help from the pitch in the first three days,&quot; Miraz said. &quot;If I bowl in good areas and the batter makes a mistake, then I have a chance of taking wickets. My job was to make sure I did not concede runs from one end.&quot; &quot;In the second innings I will come as an attacking bowler when the ball is turning,&quot; he said.

Pakistan's Azan Awais watches the ball after playing a shot during the third day of the first Test cricket match between Bangladesh and Pakistan at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on May 10, 2026. (AFP)

Cricket

Bangladesh holds a narrow lead against Pakistan after Mehidy Hasan Miraz takes five wickets and debutant Azan Awais scores a century on the third day of the first Test in Dhaka.

Bangladesh-Pakistan Test evenly poised after Mehidy takes 5 wickets

KARACHI: Pakistan included four uncapped players in their squad announced Saturday for next month&#39;s two Test matches against Bangladesh, and also appointed Sarfaraz Ahmed as head coach.&nbsp;The matches, part of the World Test Championship (WTC) will be played in Dhaka (May 8-12) and Sylhet (12-16).&nbsp;Top-order batter Shan Masood will lead the Test side, which has promising new players in Azan Awais, Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt and Muhammad Ghazi Ghori, selected on their good performances in domestic cricket.&nbsp;Spinners Noman Ali and Sajid Khan remain Pakistan&#39;s main strength with the pace attack including Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali.&nbsp;The players will undergo a camp in Karachi and are scheduled to fly to Bangladesh on May 2.&nbsp;Pakistan Cricket Board also appointed Sarfaraz as head coach to the post that was vacant after Azhar Mahmood resigned last year.&nbsp;&quot;PCB also confirms the appointment of red-ball coaches for the Bangladesh tour, with former Test captain Ahmed appointed as head coach with Asad Shafiq and Umar Gul working as batting and bowling coaches, respectively, on the tour,&quot; the PCB said in a statement naming the 16-member squad.&nbsp;Shafiq and Gul are both former Pakistan players.&nbsp;Pakistan are fifth on the Test Championship table after drawing their two-match series 1-1 at home against South Africa last year.&nbsp;Squad: Shan Masood (captain), Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais, Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Pakistan included four uncapped players in their squad announced Saturday for next month's two Test matches against Bangladesh, and also appointed Sarfaraz Ahmed as head coach.

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Bangladesh-Pakistan Test evenly poised after Mehidy takes 5 wickets

Pakistan include four uncapped players for Bangladesh Tests