'We should have taken all ten wickets' - Shanto rues missed chances

In a grueling final-day Test battle under the blistering Abu Dhabi heat, Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto could not hide his frustration after his side allowed Afghanistan to pull off a sensational draw. Despite dominating large parts of the match, Bangladesh failed to convert crucial opportunities on the fifth day, leaving Afghanistan stranded eight down after a marathon 142-over blockathon in the fourth innings. Costly Lapses on the Final Day Bangladesh entered the final day as clear favorites to wrap up victory, but a sequence of field lapses and strokes of sheer bad luck ultimately stood between them and a Test win. The fifth day saw a dropped catch, a missed stumping, and a botched run-out attempt—errors that proved fatal on an unhelpful surface. To add to Bangladesh's agony, fortune favored Afghanistan at a critical moment when the ball rolled off Yamin Ahmadzai's bat directly onto the stumps, only for the bails to stubbornly remain in place. Reflecting on the near-miss, Shanto admitted that the result left a bitter taste. "I think we gave our best, but we didn't take the opportunities," Shanto stated after the match. "In this kind of condition, these things probably made the difference. We should have taken ten wickets today. I think we ended up drawing the game due to the small mistakes. It is certainly a disappointing result, but we played good cricket on all five days." Praise for Bowlers and Lessons for the Future Despite the sting of the draw, Shanto praised the unrelenting shift put in by his bowling unit, who bowled their hearts out across two days on a flat, unyielding deck. However, he emphasized the need for the attack to develop sharper tactical variation on flat pitches late in Test matches. Looking ahead, Shanto highlighted the importance of playing in tough, subcontinent-like conditions ahead of their upcoming schedule: "Our bowlers worked very hard, especially in these conditions today. I think we have to give our bowlers the credit. We couldn't use the opportunities," he noted. "We have an experienced bowling attack who all know what's expected of them. They bowled in the right areas for a long period. I think maybe the bowlers can figure out exactly how else to bowl in these conditions." Litton Das Makes Test History While the team result fell short of expectations, the match witnessed a landmark individual milestone for Litton Das. The star wicketkeeper-batter was named Player of the Match after delivering a heroic performance in scorching conditions. Litton achieved an unprecedented feat in Test cricket history, becoming the first-ever wicketkeeper to record a century, a half-century, and nine dismissals in a single Test match. Shanto praised his star performer’s resilience: "It was outstanding the way he kept wickets and played those two innings, especially in this weather. It is a great sign for our team that someone bounced back after two or three low scores." Credit to Afghanistan's Resilience Shanto was equally gracious in acknowledging Afghanistan’s gutsy fourth-innings resistance. Chasing survival rather than runs, Afghanistan's batters showed incredible resolve against a high-quality Bangladesh bowling attack, anchored by a superb century from young talent Sediqullah Atal. "They played some brilliant cricket," Shanto conceded. "We have to give them credit as well. Especially the way Sediqullah batted, it was really impressive. We never thought that the match would be over on the fourth day. The wicket was good on the fourth and fifth day... They must be credited for the way they batted against our quality of bowling attack." Looking Ahead While a draw in Abu Dhabi feels like a lost opportunity for Bangladesh, the fixture served as an invaluable testing ground. As Bangladesh prepares for their upcoming overseas challenges, Shanto’s men will know that in Test cricket, taking ten wickets requires not just relentless discipline, but clinical precision when the key moments arrive.