Towhid Hridoy's unbeaten 242 sets a Bangladesh Test record and lifts the hosts ahead in Sylhet

Towhid Hridoy's unbeaten 242 in Sylhet is the highest Test innings played by a Bangladesh batter and has carried the hosts from 184 for 7 to a first-innings lead

Hridoy resumed the third day on 29 and was still unbeaten when the innings ended, finishing on 242 not out from 359 balls with 22 fours and 11 sixes. Bangladesh closed on 386, a lead of 30 over West Indies' 356.

The innings passed Mushfiqur Rahim's 219 not out against Zimbabwe in Mirpur in 2018, a national record that had stood for eight years. Hridoy is the fourth Bangladesh batter to reach a Test double century, and the first to turn a maiden Test hundred into one.

West Indies reached 7 for 0 in four overs before bad light ended the day, still 23 runs behind.

A rearguard from 184 for 7

Bangladesh had been 51 for 3 and were in deeper trouble on the third morning, losing Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz in quick succession to slip to 184 for 7.

That was effectively eight down. Shadman Islam was taken to hospital on the second day after twisting his ankle and was unable to bat, leaving Hridoy with two partners.

He found a willing one in Taijul Islam, who batted close to two and a half hours for 22 from 56 balls. Their stand of 117 for the eighth wicket is Bangladesh's second-highest for that wicket, behind the 144 Mushfiqur and Mehidy put on against Zimbabwe in 2018.

Taskin Ahmed then contributed 12 in a ninth-wicket partnership worth 85. Jomel Warrican did most of the damage around them, accounting for Mushfiqur, Litton, Taijul and Hasan Mahmud.

Restraint before the assault

The shift in Hridoy's method was visible a day earlier, when he made 29 from 80 deliveries and left his attacking strokes alone.

He reached exactly 100 at lunch on the third day, then changed gear. Cuts, pulls and drives came off both quick and slow bowling as he moved through the afternoon without offering a chance.

Hridoy added 213 runs in the day, beating Shakib Al Hasan's 212 against New Zealand in 2017 for the most by a Bangladesh batter in a single day of a Test.

He took 154 of his runs in boundaries, a Bangladesh record for a Test innings, and his 11 sixes are the most any Bangladesh batter has hit in one.

Answering the critics

Hridoy came into this match under scrutiny. He made 43 in the first innings of the opening Test in Dhaka before cramping, and a loose second-innings dismissal brought questions over whether his attacking instincts suited the longer format.

The team management kept faith. Asked after that Test whether Hridoy was built for red-ball cricket, captain Najmul Hossain Shanto said "we all know how capable he is and how good a batsman he is", adding that he had "full faith that he will make a very good comeback and score big runs".

It is a familiar position for a batter who served suspensions for dissent in domestic cricket in 2025. "All I can do is answer my critics through my bat," he said after that episode.

This is only his third Test.

Where the match stands

West Indies had set the tone with 356, built on Amir Jangoo's 133, before Hasan Mahmud's six-wicket haul closed the innings.

That advantage is gone. Bangladesh's 30-run lead is slender, but it was not on offer at all when the seventh wicket fell, and two full days remain in Sylhet.

Scorecard: West Indies 356 (106.4 overs) and 7 for 0 (4 overs); Bangladesh 386 (111.5 overs), Towhid Hridoy 242 not out. Stumps, day three — West Indies trail by 23 runs.