Australia v Bangladesh LIVE: Bangladesh seizes control as Smith grasses a crucial chance

One wicket and a difficult dropped chance was a paltry return for Australia in a morning session where, with sensible and technically sound batting, Bangladesh took full control of the Test match, just 17 runs behind with eight wickets in the bank.

Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood beat the bat a lot, but the relative lack of edges suggested their lengths were too short, and any overcorrections were punished by Tanzid Hasan, Mominul Haque and skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto.

Beau Webster and Cameron Green posed few problems. Tanzid’s chance, grassed by Steve Smith at slip after a deflection off Alex Carey, came in Nathan Lyon’s first over - he might have come on to bowl earlier.

In the final minutes before lunch, Australia were complaining about the ball going out of shape: their first Test of an exacting season is starting to resemble a pear.

Bangladesh 2-181, trailing Australia by 17 runs.

Another session, another Bangladesh triumph.

The tourists started the day at 1-96 and have stretched that to 2-181 at lunch on day two of this Darwin Test. The wicket to fall today was Mominul for 49 - caught behind by Alex Carey off the bowling of Josh Hazlewood.

Bangladesh will start the middle session trailing Australia’s first-innings total of 198 by just 17 runs.

Tanzid has continued to bat with class and patience to score 74 from 144 balls, while No.4 Shanto has looked settled on 28 off 40. Tanzid did survive a tough chance after he was dropped at first slip by Steve Smith.

Retired Test great David Warner is loving Jake Weatherald’s approach at short leg.

Weatherald starts back and walks in with the bowler, rather than plonk himself at the batsman’s hip.

“I’ve never seen that in my life. Everyone’s got their own method, but I’ve never seen that,” Warner says on Kayo Sports.

“Usually, you know, you have got to be quite flexible and agile in there, but walking in you’re a metre from the bat.”

Bangladesh 2-175 off 50 overs, trailing Australia by 23 runs. One more over before lunch.

I know a lot of noise has been made about playing a Test match in Australia in August - “don’t they know it’s football season?” - but, gee, it looks relaxing in the Darwin crowd.

People in shorts and shirts, floppy hats and sunglasses, spread around the ground on their chairs, enjoying a cool drink. I could live with that.

But it is not so relaxing on the field for the Australians. They continue to rotate their bowling attack, searching for another breakthrough. Cameron Green just went for 10 off one over. So, that didn’t work. Nathan Lyon is probing away looking for an edge. He can’t find one.

Bangladesh 2-174 off 49 overs, trailing Australia by 24 runs. Tanzid 74 (140), Shanto 21 (32).

Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting believes D-Day is coming in this Darwin Test for a number of underperforming batters.

Apart from Steve Smith’s 71 - and he was lucky not to be given out caught behind on seven - the Australian top order failed in a total of 198.

“I’m not sure if they are scared of making change or deep down they know that there might not be anything that is waiting in shield cricket underneath,” Channel 7 commentator Ponting told SEN this morning.

“But I just think there’s been a couple of years now, there’s been 12 months now where they’ve had the opportunity to make change.

Click here to read article