ENGLAND Under-19 were beaten by Bangladesh in a four-day Test in Chittagong in accordance with the pattern at this level on the subcontinent.

======STOP SUMMARY=====

Though the margin was only two wickets in a hard-fought match, the result hinted at the reason why England struggle so frequently at senior Test level. Players in the UK take longer to mature and probably go into full-time cricket too early. There can be no high hopes of success in the junior world cup in New Zealand in January after consistent failure in past decade.

England collapsed to 107 against Bangladesh after achieving a first-innings lead of 49 at the Jahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. Their batting had been undistiguished from the start as they took 119 overs to compile a total of 221. James Goodman, at No 3, lingered 73 balls for his eight runs, and captain Azeem Rafiq top-scored with 59. Coyne did not bat in the second innings, presumably through illness, when England crawled along for 69 overs against a tight spin attack.

Danny Briggs, the Hampshire left-armer, took 5-50 in the second innings, but he could not prevent the Bangladeshis squeezing home, with wicketkeeper Anamul Haque hitting a crucial 59 not out to add to his 46 in the first innings. England beat these opponents by 10 wickets in their four-dayer at Scarborough in July, but the subcontinent provided a completely different challenge.

England were without the Somerset batsman Jos Buttler, with Somerset in the Champions League Twenty20 tournament in India.

England Under-19 squad: B Stokes (Durham), C Dent (Gloucs), D Payne (Gloucs), M Bates (Hampshire), D Briggs (Hampshire), J Vince (Hampshire), J Goodman (Kent), N Buck (Leicestershire), C Haggett (Somerset), J Buttler (Somerset), M Dunn (Surrey), A Javid (Warwicks), P Best (Warwicks), A Rafiq (Yorkshire), J Root (Yorkshire), C Roebuck (Yorkshire).

Coach: Mick Newell