Opener Mayank Agarwal grinded a below-par Bangladesh bowling unit with a career-best 243 as India buried the visitors under a deluge of runs on the second day of the opening Test in Indore on Friday.
Agarwal’s third Test hundred and his second double, which came from just 330 balls, formed the cornerstone of India’s 493/6, which gave the hosts a sizeable lead of 343 runs.
Agarwal managed to overshadow a batting line-up that has Rohit Sharma (6), Cheteshwar Pujara (54), skipper Virat Kohli (0) and Ajinkya Rahane (86 off 172 balls) in its ranks.
The opener’s partnership of 91 for the second wicket with Pujara and 190 for the fourth wicket with Rahane were crucial in the Indian innings.
A whirlwind partnership of 123 in 23.5 overs with Ravindra Jadeja (60*) for the fifth wicket added insult to injury for Bangladesh. The match has the possibility of ending inside three days if India declare overnight and replicate their bowling efforts from the first innings.
For Agarwal, his appetite for runs, carefully cultivated through solid performances at the domestic and India A level, is paying dividends. Having scored tough runs in Australia, Agarwal has now earned the right to consolidate his place with some heavy-duty scoring.
It did help that Bangladesh got their bowling combination wrong. On a pitch, where someone with express pace and variation was needed, the visitors fielded two specialist spinners in left-arm orthodox Taijul Islam (0/120 in 28 overs) and off-spinner Mehidy Hasan (1/115 in 27 overs).
Agarwal tore into the spin duo; the eight sixes that he hit came off the two spinners. He also hit 28 boundaries during his stay at the crease.
The coveted double hundred came by lofting Miraj over long-on while the stand-out six was an inside out over extra cover off Taijul. Then there was one down the ground and a couple over long-off.
The spinners were either too short or full outside the off-stump. The field placement for an off-spinner – a deep point for saving a cut shot and deep square leg for saving a pull-shot – was a reflection of Bangladesh’s approach.
Abu Jayed (4/108 in 25 overs) bowled with heart and snapped up Pujara, Kohli and Rahane but his new-ball partner Ebadot Hossain (1/115 in 31 overs) neither had pace nor the variation to trouble the Indian batsmen.