The table turned for the Bangladesh batters as they were restricted to 133 in 20 overs in the second of the three-match T20I series against Pakistan at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Tuesday.
After acing a below-par target of 110 in 15.3 overs in the first match, Bangladesh opener Parvez Hossain denied the claim of Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson that the wicket of Mirpur was not up to the mark for T20Is.
But Bangladesh were put up to the challenge of batting first this time as Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha opted to field first.
Jaker Ali (55 off 48) made the only fifty of the innings, while Mahedi Hasan contributed 33 off 25 balls.
Mohammad Naim, who came in place of Tanzid Hasan, struggled to time the ball before attempting a lap shot off Fahim Ashraf in the second over.
The left-handed opener鈥檚 wicket was the early indication that desperation would prove costly on the pitch, which was a fresh one.
It was tough to play shots here as the balls were gripping and holding on the pitch. Bangladesh lost as many as four wickets while scoring just 29 runs.
Liton Das went for a pull and failed before Parvez Hossain鈥攚ho was cautious with shot selection鈥攚as caught at mid-on.
Pressure made the batters do funny things as Towhid Hridoy took off for a single after playing to mid-on and eventually was run out.
Jaker and Mahedi both took time to rebuild, and so they did in their partnership of 53 off 49.
Mahedi used his crease against the spinners and struck two fours and as many sixes before falling to Mohammad Nawaz in the 14th over.
But Bangladesh were in the damp again as Shamim Hossain dragged one into the stumps to become the second scalp of the debutant pacer Ahmed Daniyal.
Jaker then dragged Bangladesh past the 130 mark with his gritty innings, where he had made just 13 runs in his first 18 balls.
But his patience paid off as his last 30 balls yielded 42 runs. Although that strike rate is not particularly high, it felt significant on a sluggish wicket.
Jaker held the innings from one end and made sure that Bangladesh had something in the vault to fight with.
Bangladesh bowlers then made merry as the Pakistan batters started to fall like they had a train to catch.
But it was quite sure even after the first innings that the Mirpur pitch would come under scrutiny again.