diff --git a/tests/test-bad-pull b/tests/test-bad-pull
--- a/tests/test-bad-pull
+++ b/tests/test-bad-pull
@@ -17,8 +17,9 @@ signal.signal(signal.SIGTERM, lambda x: 
 run()
 EOF
 
+set +x # backgrounding sometimes disturbs the order of command tracing
 python dumb.py 2>/dev/null &
-sleep 2
+set -x
 
 hg clone http://localhost:20059/foo copy2
 echo $?