Picture from Pakistan vs Bangladesh first Test.© AFP
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Friday that fans have been allowed free entry at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium for the remainder of the first Test between Pakistan and Bangladesh, according to Geo News. The announcement from the PCB came after the end of the third day of the first Test match between Pakistan and Bangladesh. PCB released a statement and stated that the decision was taken in view of the weekend.
“The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced free entry for spectators for the remaining days (fourth and fifth) of the first Test match between Pakistan and Bangladesh at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. The decision was made keeping in view of the weekend, which will allow families and students to turn up in maximum numbers to support their cricketing stars and witness action between the two sides. The ongoing two-match Test series is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25,” PCB stated in a statement as quoted by Geo News.
“Spectators are required to bring their original CNIC or B-form to enter the stadium and they will be able to watch the action free of cost from any of the VIP enclosures (Imran Khan and Javed Miandad) (for families only) and premium enclosures (Miran Baksh, Shoaib Akhtar, Sohail Tanvir and Yasir Arafat). The free entry policy does not apply for the tickets purchased for the PCB Gallery or Platinum Box,” the statement added.
Coming to the match, Bangladesh won the toss and put Pakistan to bat first. After Pakistan struggled at 16/3 with the loss of their top order, including skipper Babar Azam for a duck, Saim Ayub (56 in 98 balls, with four boundaries and a six) provided support to Shakeel in bringing Pakistan back on track with a 98 run partnership. Then a 240-run partnership with Mohammed Rizwan (171* in 239 balls, with 11 fours and three sixes) and a cameo from Shaheen Shah Afridi (29* in 24 balls, with a four and two sixes) took Pakistan to a big score of 448/6.
Hasan Mahmud (2/70) and Shoriful Islam (2/77) were the top bowlers for Bangladesh.
Bangladesh ended day three at 3316/5, with Mushfiqur Rahim (55*) and Litton Das (52*) still on the crease.
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