Shadman Islam did everything right on the first morning of day two. He resumed on 99, flicked Joshua Bishop for the single he needed, and had his third Test century before the crowd had settled. Then the match pivoted entirely. Bishop trapped Shadman lbw the very next over, and Bangladesh's innings disintegrated — seven wickets for 51 runs, all out 272, done before lunch. The damage was distributed efficiently. Jomel Warrican finished with 5-53, his fourth five-wicket haul in Tests, operating as the primary destroyer with his left-arm spin. Debutant Joshua Bishop chipped in with two wickets, including the crucial Shadman dismissal and the scalp of the returning Towhid Hridoy, who came back from a cramp retirement only to be bowled without adding a run. Shamar Joseph cleaned up the tail with two more. Bangladesh's lower order offered nothing. Shadman himself was clear-eyed about the failure in his post-play comments. The top order — himself included at 105 — converted starts into fifties and hundreds but not into the 150s and 200s that push a team total past 450. He's right. This is the structural problem Bangladesh's batting has carried for years: promising top-order knocks that stop short of match-defining scores. West Indies' reply was aggressive from ball one. John Campbell and Brandon King attacked the new ball, racing to 29 before Hasan Mahmud had King caught for 15. Campbell continued in fifth gear, reaching his fifty off 61 balls and pushing West Indies to 89-1 at tea. He looked set for a substantial innings. Then rain interrupted for an hour, and the match shifted again. Bangladesh's spinners found grip and rhythm on the restart. Mehidy Hasan Miraz got one to turn sharply past Campbell's outside edge, and captain Najmul Hossain Shanto held a diving catch. Campbell's 54 was done. Taijul Islam struck twice in the 36th over — Hodge for 7, Jangoo for a duck — and suddenly West Indies were 97-4, the momentum of that opening partnership erased. Tagenarine Chanderpaul (43 not out) and Justin Greaves (15 not out) steadied things before bad light ended play. West Indies trail by 138. The match is balanced but tilted toward whoever wins the third-morning session. Chanderpaul's patience will be tested against spin on a surface that turned enough to produce Taijul's double-strike. This is a Test that will be decided by which middle order holds its nerve. Both sides have now shown they can collapse under pressure. The third day will tell us which batting lineup has the deeper reserves of concentration.
