| First Test, Chittagong (day five): |
| Bangladesh 430 (Mehedi Hasan 103, Warrican 4-133) & 223-8 dec (Mominul 115; Warrican 3-57) |
| West Indies 259 (Brathwaite 76; Mehedi Hasan 4-58) & 395-7 (Mayers 210*, Bonner 86) |
| West Indies won by three wickets |
| Scorecard |
Debutant Kyle Mayers scored a stunning 210 not out as West Indies secured the fifth highest run chase in Test history against Bangladesh in Chittagong.
The Windies chased down 395 to win by three wickets, with 15 balls remaining in the final hour of the first Test.
Mayers also shared an outstanding fourth-wicket stand of 216 with fellow Test debutant Nkrumah Bonner.
Bonner fell lbw for 86, but Mayers played with aggression and fluency to see his side home.
‘One of the best innings of the 21st century’
Mayers’ outstanding knock – which took 310 balls and included 20 boundaries and seven sixes – was one of the finest seen in modern Test cricket.
The 28-year-old – who had only played 32 first-class matches prior to the Test, with a modest average – becomes only the sixth player in history to score a double century in the fourth innings of a Test, and the sixth to pass 200 on debut.
He also recorded the highest second-innings score by a debutant and the second highest individual score in a successful fourth-innings chase after Windies legend Sir Gordon Greenidge’s unbeaten 214 against England at Lord’s in 1984.
West Indies’ win was also the highest successful fourth-innings chase since 2008, and the highest made in Asia.
| Team | Opposition | Target | Score | Venue/year |
| West Indies | Australia | 418 | 418-7 | Antigua, 2003 |
| South Africa | Australia | 414 | 414-4 | Perth, 2008 |
| Australia | England | 404 | 404-3 | Headingley, 1948 |
| India | West Indies | 403 | 406-6 | Trinidad, 1976 |
| West Indies | Bangladesh | 395 | 395-7 | Chittagong, 2021 |
How the day unfolded
Beginning the day on 110-3, a victory seemed the unlikeliest of outcomes for the tourists.
However, Mayers hit the ball to all parts of the ground and was supported well by Bonner’s more watchful approach, as Bangladesh failed to take a wicket in the first two sessions of the day.
The hosts – who were a bowler short without spinner Shakib Al Hasan, who was unable to bat or bowl in the second innings because of a thigh injury – finally found the breakthrough after Bonner fell to Taijul Islam in the first over after tea.
Jermaine Blackwood was then bowled by Nayeem Hasan for nine, leaving the game poised for an intriguing finish with all four results possible.
With time running out, wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva provided Mayers with the back-up required.
Mayers was able to unleash some powerful, aerial hitting and he reached his double century by launching left-arm spinner Taijul over mid-wicket for six.
Da Silva was bowled by Taijul for 20 off 59 balls, and with the scores level, Kemar Roach edged to leg slip for a duck with three overs left.
However, the damage had already been done and, quite fittingly, Mayers hit the winning run for a historic victory.
Missed chances for Bangladesh
Despite a gallant effort by West Indies, Bangladesh will be ruing their poor use of the decision review system, as well as fielding errors which cost the Tigers opportunities to break up the Mayers-Bonner partnership.
Mayers, on 47, was struck on the pads by Taijul and there was another appeal against Bonner, shortly after, off the bowling of Nayeem.
On both occasions, Bangladesh captain Mominul Haque opted not to review, with replays showing the umpire’s decision would have been overturned.
Mayers was also dropped on 49 by Najmul Hossain Shanto at first slip, off the bowling of Mehedi Hasan.
The final match of the two-Test series begins in Mirpur on Thursday.
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