Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen have guided England to a nine-wicket victory over Bangladesh in the final session of the Test at Mirpur as the visitors wrapped up the series with a 2-0 scoreline.
As had been the case at Chittagong, Bangladesh refused to lie down and made the visitors work for their victory after setting a 209-run target for the England batsmen to win the Test. It was Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan who led the resistance for the home side, making 96 before he was stumped off the bowling of James Tredwell.
However, the lack of support for the skipper from Bangladesh’s other batsmen on day five was telling, and the pendulum had swung firmly in England’s favour in a match that looked to be heading for a draw at the end of day three.
Shakib’s was the key wicket, and Tredwell’s fourth victim of the second innings. The Kent spinner finished with figures of 4-82, and match figures of 6-181 in his debut Test.
Tredwell’s performance at Mirpur has indicated two things: that the decision to take two slow bowlers into the match was the right one for Alastair Cook’s side, and that the 28-year-old off-spinner has surely cemented himself as England’s No. 2 choice slow bowler, behind Graeme Swann but ahead of the young Adil Rashid and well in front of the out-of-favour Monty Panesar, who will be very, very lucky to earn a Test recall based on the current pecking order.
In a match where the use of technology has again proved an issue – Bangladesh lamented the absence of the umpire Decision Review System for at least three close calls during England’s first innings – a third-umpire decision on opener Jonathan Trott’s run-out in the second innings has left more than a few pundits scratching their heads.
The video replays of the supposed run-out seemed to indicate the evidence of whether or not the batsman was out was inconclusive, but Trott was not awarded the benefit of the doubt and was sent on his way for 19.
Trott can count himself unlucky, but his dismissal ultimately had no bearing on the result as Cook (109 not out) brought up his 12th Test century with a four, and a couple of overs later swept a Mahmdullah full toss to the boundary to secure his second win as Test captain, and maintain England’s perfect record against Bangladesh.
The opposition may have only been Test minnows, but with his performance on this tour, Cook has gone some way to proving his mettle as captain. The true test of the 25-year-old’s captaincy credentials will likely come some way down the track when he faces tougher Test opposition – and that might be a while off with Andrew Strauss entrenched in the role now – but centuries in both Tests on the tour seem to indicate the leadership of the side has been nothing but positive for Cook’s personal performance either.
Pietersen’s unbeaten 74 in the second innings is another reason for England to smile, with the South African-born batsman finally returning to form during this series, with his most recent innings following on from a 99-run knock at Chittagong. Again, the opposition is only Bangladesh but during the preceding ODI series, they looked to have Pietersen’s measure with their left-armed spinners before KP made the necessary adjustments to overcome what had been exposed as a glaring c***k in his armour.
It’s been a job well done for England, who play their next Tests against Pakistan this summer before heading to Australia as they attempt to retain their grasp on the coveted Ashes urn.
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