The third day of Ireland’s second Test in Bangladesh was briefly interrupted by a magnitude 5.7 earthquake in Dhaka, causing a temporary stoppage at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. Despite the disruption, play resumed after three minutes, with Ireland continuing their chase against Bangladesh’s imposing total.

Earthquake Hits During Play

According to Reuters and local authorities, the earthquake struck Friday in Bangladesh’s capital city, tragically killing at least five people and injuring around 100 others. Players on the field remained at the crease while the match was paused, with coaches, support staff, and spectators moving to safer positions along the boundary and stands.

Ireland head coach Heinrich Malan reflected on the moment:

“I’ve been involved in a couple of earthquakes from my time living in New Zealand. It’s never a nice feeling, and you’re trying to understand what is happening in the moment around you. Everything stood still for a couple of minutes, but we got back to business. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this event.”

Cricket Ireland confirmed that all involved in the game were thinking of those impacted by the earthquake.

Ireland’s Batting Efforts

Ireland resumed batting in pursuit of Bangladesh’s first-innings total of 476, which featured centuries from Najmul Hossain Shanto (128) and Mushfiqur Rahim (106), along with a six-wicket haul from Andy McBrine (6-109) during Bangladesh’s innings.

Ireland were bowled out for 265, with Lorcan Tucker scoring a fourth Test half-century and Jordan Neill contributing 49 runs. Ireland had been 98-5 at the close of day two, but despite some resistance, they could not match Bangladesh’s total.

Bangladesh Extend Lead

After opting not to enforce the follow-on, Bangladesh returned to bat, with Shadman Islam unbeaten on 69 and Mahmudul Hasan Joy contributing 60 runs before falling to Gavin Hoey. This pushed the hosts to a 367-run lead, with nine wickets remaining.

Bangladesh had previously won the first Test of the two-match series by an innings and 47 runs, and the teams are scheduled to follow the series with three T20 internationals.

Safety and International Cricket

The incident highlighted the unpredictable challenges of hosting international cricket in seismic regions, and both teams maintained focus while showing sensitivity to the broader humanitarian impact.

Malans’ remarks reinforced the importance of player and spectator safety:

“It’s important to stay calm in these situations, but we are aware that the impacts extend beyond the stadium. We hope there was not too much damage.”

Despite the temporary disruption, Bangladesh’s dominance in the series remains clear, with Ireland facing an uphill battle to salvage a result in the second Test.