Root beds in after Mehedi stuns England

Lunch England 81 for 3 (Root 38*, Moeen 17*) v BangladeshLive scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Mehedi Hasan, Bangladesh’s 18-year-old debutant, stole the show on the first morning of the first Test at Chittagong, as England’s batsmen were served notice of the trial by spin that awaits on this winter’s tour of the subcontinent.

Bowling with purpose and purchase on a lively pitch that offered turn and variable degrees of bounce from the outset, Hasan was thrown the ball for the second over of the match and responded to the responsibility with the wickets of his fellow new boy Ben Duckett, for 14, and Gary Ballance, for 1.

In between whiles, Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh’s senior bowler, chipped in with the massive scalp of Alastair Cook for 4 as England slumped to 21 for 3 in the first 12 overs of the day, and had it not been for a typically serene counterattack from Joe Root, their lunchtime position of 81 for 3 could have been significantly more precarious.

By the break, Root was sitting pretty on 38 from 47 balls, another masterful display from a batsman whose ability to score off almost any delivery was an invaluable means of alleviating the pressure of a close-set field. Alongside him, Moeen Ali – promoted to No. 5 in an allrounder-laden middle order – was unbeaten on 17 from 53. Together, they had added 60 for England’s fourth wicket to restore some order to their innings, although Moeen was fortunate to survive after initially being given out lbw for 16. On review, he was shown to have got the thinnest splinter …

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