Mohammad Rizwan was at 171 runs when Pakistan captain Shan Masood chose to declare the innings, sparking disappointment among fans on social media.
After a challenging start on the first day of the opening Test against Bangladesh, Pakistan recovered with centuries from Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Rizwan, posting a solid first-innings score of 448/6. Shakeel was dismissed for 141, while Rizwan remained unbeaten on 171 before Masood decided to call off the innings. This decision led to a heated debate among fans and cricket experts, with many questioning whether Masood should have allowed Rizwan the opportunity to reach his double century.
Shakeel, Rizwan’s teammate, addressed questions about the timing of the declaration after the innings ended, as Rizwan was just 29 runs away from a double-century. Shakeel clarified that Rizwan had been informed about the declaration an hour prior, indicating that the decision was not made in haste.
“As for Rizwan’s potential double century, I don’t think the decision to declare was rushed. Rizwan was clearly informed an hour earlier about the declaration timing, so he was aware of when it would happen. He was told we would aim to reach around 450 before declaring,” Shakeel explained following the end of play on the second day.
Many fans disagreed with the timing of the declaration, suggesting that Pakistan could have continued batting until they surpassed the 500-run mark, which would have allowed Rizwan to reach his double century.
In the 12 overs that Pakistan bowled on Day 2, they were unable to take a wicket. Bangladesh’s openers, Shadman Islam and Zakir Hasan, scored 12 and 11 runs respectively, ending the day with a total of 27/0 at stumps.
