Andy Balbirnie was stating the obvious in Sylhet yesterday when he said Ireland must be better going into Wednesday’s second Test against Bangladesh after suffering an innings and 47-run defeat in the first of the mini-series.

“That was tough for us,” the Ireland skipper admitted. 

“Bangladesh showed us how to get a big first-innings score and we were always on the back foot. They were just better than us in every aspect of the game.

“What we wanted to do was fight for as long as possible and I thought we showed that in glimpses, but if we are going to compete, we are going to have to be better for longer.”

Andy McBrine is always up for a scrap and the nugget restored a little pride to Ireland yesterday (FRI) with his fifth Test half-century but it was always going to be in a losing cause.

The Boys in Green began the fourth day needing a further 215 to make the home side bat again and came close to achieving that modest ambition thanks to McBrine’s 52, a positive 38 from Balbirnie and cameos from Jordan Neill and Barry McCarthy.

That the last four Ireland wickets could take the score from 116-6 to 254 all out again showed what could have been with greater application and the watchful patience McBrine displayed during his 106-ball stay.

The all-rounder from Donemana, near Derry, rarely gives up his wicket easily — his first-innings dismissal, stumped for five, was an aberration — and he has now faced more balls than any Ireland batter in Tests, as well as bowling more deliveries.

After being reprieved by two DRS reviews in as many balls, he completed his half-century just before lunch only to cloth a long hop straight to mid-wicket immediately after the break.

Balbirnie showed no ill-effects from the sore finger that prevented him batting on Thursday evening as he helped McBrine add 66 for the seventh wicket before missing one of his favourite sweep shots and being adjudged lbw.

“We are aware of how good a team Bangladesh are in their own conditions,” Balbirnie added, looking forward to the next Test challenge in Dhaka.

“From a skills point of view, we have to get to their level as soon as possible, and that will come by playing as many matches as we can in these testing conditions.

“We want to be better going into that next match.”