Bangladesh on verge of first Test win in Australia as hosts 161-4 at stumps on Day 3
Bangladesh moved within sight of a first Test victory in Australia after Australia were 161-4 and 67 runs behind at stumps on Day 3 of the first Test at Marrara Stadium on Saturday, August 15, 2026. Cameron Green was 43 not out and Alex Carey 19 not out as the hosts held on at the close.
Resuming on 351-6, Mehidy Hasan Miraz shepherded Bangladesh's lower order to 426, extending the tourists' first-innings lead beyond 200 before returning to claim a late wicket with the ball. Miraz put on partnerships of 46 with Hasan Mahmud, 18 with Taijul Islam and 46 with Taskin Ahmed, and finished on 65 from 154 balls.
Josh Hazlewood took all four Australian wickets to fall on Saturday and finished with figures of 6-89 from 28 overs for the innings. Hazlewood’s fifth wicket—Mehidy—was his 300th Test scalp, making him the fourth of Australia's Big Four bowling attack to reach the mark and the ninth Australian to do so, and he then removed Ebadot Hossein caught behind for 7 to end Bangladesh’s innings at 426.
Australia’s top order again faltered before tea as Jake Weatherald (0) and Travis Head (17) both chopped on to paceman Hasan Mahmud while attempting cut shots, leaving the hosts 37-2. Hasan Mahmud’s return of 2-33 on Saturday took his match tally to eight after he took 6-55 in the first innings that had limited Australia to 198.
Marnus Labuschagne, searching for runs, made 31 from 59 balls before being bowled by Taijul Islam, who returned 1-28, and Steve Smith accumulated 44 with measured intent until Mehidy took a sharp caught-and-bowled chance to remove him as Australia slipped to 122-4, still 106 runs behind at that stage.
Fielding lapses have compounded Australia’s problems: the hosts dropped three catches on Saturday, including an inexplicable drop by Steve Smith in the deep, bringing the total to five missed chances across the match. Australia was described in the report as at times its own enemy as those missed opportunities mounted.
Green and Carey dug in to keep Australia afloat late in the day, but the hosts face the dual task of erasing the 67-run deficit and then compiling a defendable total in the fourth innings. The match sits in the two-Test "Top End" series that, the report notes, starts a heavy 12-month schedule for the Australians featuring 20 Test matches, including tours to South Africa, India and England.
Bangladesh needs six wickets to secure what would be its first Test victory in Australia and, the report says, arguably the biggest win in its Test history.
