Dowrich fancies West Indies' chances in 'even game'

West Indies' target on Saturday will be to keep Bangladesh's lead below 200 runs, and they plan on doing that by "going hard at them" in the morning session.

Wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich, who battled hard with an unbeaten 63, stated that West Indies will need to pick up early wickets on day three if they are to avoid a tough chase in the fourth innings.

Bangladesh are currently leading by 133 runs, with five wickets in hand. Mushfiqur Rahim, unbeaten on 11, and Mehidy Hasan will be West Indies' initial stumbling blocks before Mahmudullah, the last recognised batsman, comes in at No 8.

"On this pitch, it is hard to say," Dowrich said. "I would say anything under [a lead of] 200 is possible. Anything over 200 might be difficult. I think the game is pretty even right now. Bangladesh already have a lead, and a lead on the board is always a challenge. But I think once we go hard in the morning and get those wickets as early as possible and bat well in the second innings, we could also come out winning."

Dowrich added 92 for the sixth wicket with Shimron Hetmyer, who chipped in with a counterattacking 63 off 47 balls. It was an innings that brought West Indies back into the game, after they had slipped to 88 for 5.

"I think we complement each other. Obviously, he is a very aggressive player, I told him to be selective and play his shots and that allowed me to just rotate the strike and get him on," Dowrich said of the partnership. "And once I got in it was easier for me to score. I think everyone has their style of playing on different wickets but it worked for us today."

While Dowrich was solid with the bat, he conceded that he had a more difficult job behind the stumps, since the ball was spinning both ways, and often spitting from the rough patches.

"It's a tough pitch to keep on. There is inconsistent bounce and lots of spin, but I just gotta stay low and try to catch it well," he said.

"I think it's more than trying to defend. To be able to survive we have to be positive."