Twenty-three years of waiting culminated in a landmark achievement for Bangladesh as they secured their maiden Test victory on Australian soil in Darwin. The visitors dictated the pace of the match from the opening session, ultimately dismantling the top-ranked hosts. The final act of this remarkable contest belonged to Mehidy Hasan Miraz, the country’s newly minted superstar, barely containing himself as he ran through Australia’s lower order on the fourth day, and simply kept running, arms wide, history trailing behind him.
The performance marked the all-rounder’s 15th five-wicket haul in the format, a feat achieved just 24 hours after he contributed a crucial 65-run knock alongside the tail. His efforts effectively neutralized the impact of Cameron Green’s maiden home Test century, which had briefly pushed Australia to a slender 56-run lead. Despite concerns regarding their competitiveness following a poor showing against a Cricket Australia XI last week, Bangladesh dispelled all doubts by comfortably chasing the target, cheered on by a passionate contingent of supporters.
Entering the fourth day, Australia held six wickets in hand and hoped for a dramatic turnaround. Green remained resilient, reaching 85 by the lunch break, but Mehidy seized control by dismissing Alex Carey and Beau Webster with two exceptional deliveries. Carey was undone by a ball that drifted and turned to find the edge, while Webster was clean-bowled by a delivery that straightened. These breakthroughs left the Australian tail exposed, and Pat Cummins soon departed after edging to forward short leg.
Green eventually reached his third Test century, providing a glimpse of his potential, but his resistance ended shortly after he reached 104. Having survived a lucky escape the previous evening when the ball hit the stumps without dislodging the bails, his fortune ran out when he dragged a delivery from Hasan Mahmud onto his own stumps. This dismissal was significant for Mahmud, who had initiated the victory with a six-wicket haul on the first day, finishing the match with impressive figures of 9 for 111.
The final blow was delivered by Mehidy, who trapped Nathan Lyon lbw to complete his five-wicket haul and wrap up the Australian second innings for 284. Bangladesh required only 57 runs for victory. Although Tanzid Hasan Tamim fell for a duck, Mominul Haque and Shadman Islam steered the side to a nine-wicket win. The final scorecard reflected the dominance of the visitors: Australia posted 198 and 284, while Bangladesh responded with 426 and 57/1. Key contributors included Tanzid Hasan Tamim (101), Najmul Hossain Shanto (84), and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (65), while Josh Hazlewood’s 6-89 for Australia proved insufficient against the collective Bangladeshi effort. The report also notes that bangladesh still needed three more runs than the 54 they’d been shot out for last week against a Cricket Australia XI – a scoreline that had raised questions about how competitive this contest would be. The report also notes that moving to 85 by the Lunch break, but Mehidy, who had produced an ingenious variation to trap Steve Smith the previous evening, took charge by prising out Alex Carey and Beau Webster with two, green held firm from one end. The report also notes that removing Starc nicking behind, it was Taskin Ahmed who broke the 43-run stand. The report also notes that twenty-three years is a long time to wait for an invitation. The report also notes that webster fell defending inside the line to one that went straight on and knocked over off-stump.
