Australia hit back strongly after their shock defeat in the first Test against Bangladesh, winning the second match by an innings and 51 runs in Mackay on Sunday. Mitchell Starc starred with 10 wickets as Australia completed the Test inside two days.
Only 28 Tests have finished in two days
Australia’s win created a rare piece of Test cricket history. The Mackay Test was only the 28th Test to finish in two days from the 2632 Tests played so far.In simple terms, only around 1.1% of all Tests have ended within two days.The numbers show how rare such short Tests have been. From 1877 to 1946, 15 of the 275 Tests played during the period finished in two days.There was not a single two-day Test between 1947 and 1999, even though 1,233 Tests were played during those 53 years.Since 2000, 13 of the 1,124 Tests have been completed in two days.
Mackay joins a rare list
The Australia-Bangladesh Test is the 28th two-day Test in history. The previous one was Australia’s Test against England in Perth in November 2025, which also ended inside two days.India have been involved in three two-day Tests in recent years.India beat Afghanistan in Bengaluru in 2018 and England in Ahmedabad in 2021, with both matches finishing inside two days. India’s Test against South Africa in Cape Town in January 2024 also ended in two days, with India winning the match.
Shortest Tests by duration
| No. | Teams | Days | Winner | Venue | Date | Test No. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England vs Australia | 2 | Australia | The Oval | 28 Aug 1882 | 9 |
| 2 | England vs Australia | 2 | Australia | Lord’s | 16 Jul 1888 | 28 |
| 3 | England vs Australia | 2 | England | The Oval | 13 Aug 1888 | 29 |
| 4 | England vs Australia | 2 | England | Manchester | 30 Aug 1888 | 30 |
| 5 | South Africa vs England | 2 | England | Gqeberha | 12 Mar 1889 | 31 |
| 6 | South Africa vs England | 2 | England | Cape Town | 25 Mar 1889 | 32 |
| 7 | England vs Australia | 2 | England | The Oval | 11 Aug 1890 | 34 |
| 8 | South Africa vs England | 2 | England | Gqeberha | 13 Feb 1896 | 47 |
| 9 | South Africa vs England | 2 | England | Cape Town | 21 Mar 1896 | 49 |
| 10 | Australia vs South Africa | 2 | Australia | Manchester | 27 May 1912 | 121 |
| 11 | England vs South Africa | 2 | England | The Oval | 12 Aug 1912 | 128 |
| 12 | England vs Australia | 2 | Australia | Nottingham | 28 May 1921 | 140 |
| 13 | Australia vs West Indies | 2 | Australia | Melbourne | 13 Feb 1931 | 205 |
| 14 | South Africa vs Australia | 2 | Australia | Johannesburg | 15 Feb 1936 | 250 |
| 15 | New Zealand vs Australia | 2 | Australia | Wellington | 29 Mar 1946 | 275 |
| 16 | England vs West Indies | 2 | England | Leeds | 17 Aug 2000 | 1508 |
| 17 | Australia vs Pakistan | 2 | Australia | Sharjah | 11 Oct 2002 | 1617 |
| 18 | South Africa vs Zimbabwe | 2 | South Africa | Cape Town | 4 Mar 2005 | 1737 |
| 19 | Zimbabwe vs New Zealand | 2 | New Zealand | Harare | 7 Aug 2005 | 1759 |
| 20 | South Africa vs Zimbabwe | 2 | South Africa | Gqeberha | 26 Dec 2017 | 2290 |
| 21 | India vs Afghanistan | 2 | India | Bengaluru | 14 Jun 2018 | 2307 |
| 22 | India vs England | 2 | India | Ahmedabad | 24 Feb 2021 | 2412 |
| 23 | Afghanistan vs Zimbabwe | 2 | Zimbabwe | Abu Dhabi | 2 Mar 2021 | 2413 |
| 24 | Australia vs South Africa | 2 | Australia | Brisbane | 17 Dec 2022 | 2482 |
| 25 | South Africa vs India | 2 | India | Cape Town | 3 Jan 2024 | 2522 |
| 26 | Australia vs England | 2 | Australia | Perth | 21 Nov 2025 | 2608 |
| 27 | Australia vs England | 2 | England | Melbourne | 26 Dec 2025 | 2615 |
| 28 | Australia vs Bangladesh | 2 | Australia | Mackay | 22 Aug 2026 | 2632 |
Starc takes 10 wickets
Starc was the main reason behind Australia’s dominant victory. He finished with match figures of 10-51, meaning he took 10 wickets and conceded 51 runs across Bangladesh’s two innings.He took 6-12 in Bangladesh’s first innings, when the visitors were bowled out for just 64. He then picked up four more wickets in the second innings.It was Starc’s fourth 10-wicket haul in Test cricket. A 10-wicket haul means a bowler takes at least 10 wickets across both innings of a Test match.The performance also took Starc’s Test wicket tally to 445. He moved past South Africa pace great Dale Steyn into 10th place on the all-time list.Starc was named Player of the Series after taking 12 wickets across the two Tests.“(The body’s) still hanging together, I thoroughly enjoy being a part of this group,” Starc said. “Test cricket, I’ve said it before, it will always be the pinnacle for me. I’d like to milk my body for all I can for test cricket, and that’s how it’ll remain.”
Bangladesh bowled out for 95
Bangladesh could manage only 95 in their second innings, handing Australia a comprehensive victory after their unexpected loss in the first Test in Darwin.Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto top-scored with 31, while Mushfiqur Rahim remained unbeaten on 29. Only two other Bangladesh batters scored more than 10 runs.Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon also took three wickets each. Cummins finished with 3-10, meaning three wickets for 10 runs, while Lyon took 3-25.Shanto said the conditions in Mackay were different from those in Darwin.“I think this is a different condition (to the first test in Darwin) and there’s a little bit more extra bounce and swing in the air,” Shanto said. “So it’s challenging for us, but as a team if we want to go forward we need to adjust and I hope this experience will help going forward.”
