KARACHI: Pakistan's star batter Babar Azam was dismissed for a duck in the first innings of the first Test against Bangladesh, marking the first time in his career that he has been out without scoring on home soil.
This rare occurrence occurred at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, where Babar, known for his consistent performances, was sent back to the pavilion without adding a single run to the scoreboard.
Before this match, Babar had played 24 innings across 14 Test matches at home without ever experiencing the disappointment of a duck. His last duck in any Test match came three years and 36 innings ago, underscoring the rarity of such a failure for the top batter
To date, Babar has been dismissed for a duck 8 times in his 95 Test innings. However, what makes this particular instance noteworthy is that all of his previous ducks occurred outside Pakistan.
Pakistan are 81/3 in 21 overs at Tea with Saim Ayub at 42* while Saud Shakeel made 28* after being asked to bat first.
The Men in Green recovered after being 16/3. Before Babar, Abdullah Shafique (2) and skipper Shan Masood (6) were dismissed.
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Ali, Khurram Shahzad
Bangladesh: Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Shadman Islam, Zakir Hasan, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Litton Kumer Das, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana
The match started with a delay as the wet outfield due to rain made it impossible for the match officials to start the play.
A total of 48 overs will be bowled today as the last session will begin 4:40pm after the tea break. The play will continue till 6pm but can be extended by 30 minutes to complete the overs.
The Test matches between Pakistan and Bangladesh are being played as part of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 as both teams are eager to perform and strengthen their position on the WTC points table.
Both teams have so far locked horns in 13 matches in six Test series with the Green Shirts emerging winners in 12 of them as one ended in a draw.
Faizan Lakhani Faizan Lakhani is Deputy Editor (Sports) at Geo News.- Babar Azam
