Kavem Hodge ripped the second Test wide open in Dhaka on Sunday, hammering an unbeaten 140 to plant West Indies firmly on the cusp of a series whitewash. By stumps on Day 4, the visitors had galloped to 345 for 3. That pushed their overall lead to an ominous 315 runs. Bad light spared Bangladesh further punishment late in the evening, but the damage was already absolute.
Bangladesh had entered the day nursing hopes of a fightback. Hodge extinguished them ruthlessly. The right-hander attacked Bangladesh's spinners with sweeping precision and swift footwork, raising his third Test century in just 142 deliveries when he swept Taijul Islam behind square for a single. Alongside debutant Kevin Wickham, Hodge dismantled the hosts' bowling plans in a blistering mid-afternoon assault that snatched away any lingering home momentum.
Wickham was fearless. Playing his maiden Test match, the 21-year-old followed up his first-innings 61 with a composed, fluent 78 off just 68 balls. He carved boundaries through the off-side with effortless poise, striking a crisp drive past extra cover to bring up his second half-century of the match. While Taijul eventually held a sharp return catch to remove Wickham, the partnership had already tilted the contest decisively in the Caribbean side's favour.
Earlier in the morning, West Indies laid the foundation through an 85-run opening stand between Brandon King and Joshua Da Silva after resuming on 7 for no loss. Taijul struck first for the hosts, trapping Da Silva leg-before for 36. King pressed on to record his sixth Test half-century before rashly attempting to attack off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz, falling caught for 61 at 119 for 2. Yet Bangladesh's fleeting joy proved short-lived.
Taijul finished as Bangladesh's lone workhorse with figures of 2 for 118, but the rest of the attack found no grip on an increasingly tired surface. Amir Jangoo reached the close unbeaten on 20 alongside Hodge, leaving the hosts staring down the barrel of a massive fourth-innings chase.
Yet earlier in the match, Bangladesh had held the upper hand thanks to Towhid Hridoy's marathon 242 not out, which dragged the hosts to 386 and carved out a 30-run first-innings edge. Hridoy had etched his name into national record books alongside Mushfiqur Rahim, Tamim Iqbal, and Shakib Al Hasan as only the fourth Bangladeshi batter to score a Test double-century. That monumental effort now risks ending in vain.
Bangladesh must survive three sessions on Day 5 or pull off a record fourth-innings chase to avoid a 2-0 series defeat.