Pabna, Feb 1 (V7N) — For the first time in Bangladesh’s history, a Test-20 cricket match was held at Pakshi in Ishwardi Upazila of Pabna district, marking a milestone in the evolution of domestic cricket formats in the country.

The day-long match took place on Saturday at the Pakshi Railway Football Ground, organized under the initiative of the West Zone Divisional Engineer-2. The contest was played between Pakshi Divisional Railway Engineer-1 and Rest of West Zone teams.

The match followed a unique Test-20 format, combining elements of Test and T20 cricket. It was played in two innings, with each innings limited to 20 overs.

After winning the toss, Rest of West Zone batted first in the opening innings but were bowled out for 86 runs in just 17 overs. Team captain Tanmay was the top scorer with 40 runs off 38 balls. For Pakshi Divisional Railway Engineer-1, Nazim claimed three wickets for 27 runs in four overs.

In reply, Pakshi Divisional Railway Engineer-1 were all out for 130 runs in their first innings after playing the full 20 overs. Sarwar scored the highest with 29 runs off 22 balls, while Raju of Rest of West Zone took three wickets conceding 19 runs. Pakshi gained a 44-run lead after the first innings.

Batting again in the second innings, Rest of West Zone scored 180 runs before being dismissed in 19.3 overs. Ashik top-scored with 38 runs off 17 balls, followed by captain Tanmay with 37 runs off 21 balls. F.M. of Pakshi Divisional Railway Engineer-1 delivered an impressive bowling performance, taking four wickets for 30 runs. Based on the combined innings, Pakshi were set a target of 137 runs in 20 overs.

However, Pakshi Divisional Railway Engineer-1 were bowled out for 106 runs in 16.3 overs in their second innings, handing Rest of West Zone a 30-run victory. Pakshi captain Suman scored the highest for his team with 24 runs off 28 balls. For Rest of West Zone, Sunny took three wickets for 25 runs.

Rest of West Zone player Lelin was named Man of the Match for his all-round performance, scoring 31 runs and taking five wickets across both innings.

The historic match was witnessed by Pakshi Divisional Engineer-1 Abdul Hanif and Divisional Engineer-2 Najib Kaiser throughout the day. Later, prizes were distributed among the players of the winning team.

Speaking on the occasion, Divisional Engineer-2 Najib Kaiser said he has been a cricket enthusiast since childhood and described the event as a proud moment for Ishwardi and Bangladesh. He noted that while the Test-20 format has so far been practiced in domestic cricket in England, this was the first time such a format was played outside England, making Pakshi Railway Ground the venue of a historic occasion.

He added that the initiative aims to encourage employees of the railway engineering department to engage in sports alongside their professional responsibilities, especially during holidays, and said such activities would continue in the future.

END/MSR/SMA/