New Zealand
Ashwell Prince laments Tigers' batting collapse in Christchurch
It was inevitable that the Kiwis would post a massive first-innings total after Tom Latham and Devon Conway added more than 200 runs in the second-wicket stand, and it happened. But Bangladesh's batting lineup failed to deliver Monday, on the second day of the Christchurch Test.
Replying to New Zealand’s first innings total of 521/6 declared, Bangladesh tumbled for only 126, with all of the top five batters failing to reach double figures.
A 60-run stand by Yasir Ali and Nurul Hasan Shohan rescued the Tigers from an even worse fate. Along the process, Yasir registered his maiden fifty in Tests while Shohan got 41.
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“At tea time, we identified the pitch was quite good for batting. There was value for shots off the surface. The outfield was nice. If we could hang in a little bit, we could get a partnership going,” Bangladesh batting coach Ashwell Prince said at the end of the day’s play.
“The movement happened a bit quicker off the surface today. I was comfortable thinking some of the balls would go past the outside edge. It is normal for these conditions,” he added.
With 49 more overs to play in the day, New Zealand declared unexpectedly, and it seemed that the visitors were not prepared mentally to start batting at that point of the match. It was reflected in their performance when all of the top-five batters returned to the dressing room early.
“Of course, we are disappointed (about the lean show by the top five). It was a massive effort last week. We played 173 overs against a quality bowling attack. I think it is fair to say that we expected New Zealand to come back with a lot more urgency in this game. If you compare the two games, you can see that it is really difficult to fight your way back, even if you are the No 1 team,” Prince also said.
Also read: New Zealand take giant stride as Bangladesh suffered batting collapse
For New Zealand, Trent Boult was tremendous with the ball taking five wickets— his nine five-fors in Tests so far. Along the way, he completed 300 wickets in the format.
At the end of day two, Bangladesh are behind by 395 runs— a huge task they have ahead. It’s not clear if New Zealand would enforce a follow-on. It will only be known on the third day morning.
Latham, Conway come up with thumping response
After losing the first Test to Bangladesh in Mount Maunganui, New Zealand captain Tom Latham and Devon Conway came with a thumping response on day one of the second Test in Christchurch adding 201 runs in the unbeaten second-wicket partnership on Sunday.
While Latham is marching to his double ton, Conway is just one run away from his second century in this series. Riding on their grand effort, at the end of day one, New Zealand were batting at 349 for one in 90 overs.
Bangladeshi bowlers were clearly clueless on day one after winning the toss and opted to bowl first. Hero of Bangladesh’s maiden win against New Zealand, Ebadot Hossain, bowled 21 overs only concede 114 runs at a high economy rate of 5.4.
READ: Pumped-up Tigers aim for monumental series win against Blackcaps
Bangladesh’s only success came through Shoriful Islam when he removed Will Young for 54.
Ebadot managed to convince the umpire twice to raise his finger against Latham, but on both occasions, Latham went for a review and DRS came forward to rescue the hosts’ captain. Bangladesh also missed a chance when Young was put down at seven.
Barring these chances to remove the Kiwi batters, Bangladesh failed to do anything with the ball apart from some outside edges on day one.
After putting to bat first in the wicket with some grass on it, New Zealand made a good start as the openers— Latham and Young— posted 148 runs in the opening stand which was more than enough to let down the Bangladeshi bowling attack which was imperious in the first Test of the series.
Latham’s unbeaten 186 is now the fourth-highest score by a batter in Test in a single day. Nathan Astle topped the list with 222 runs that he notched up against England in 2002 on day four while Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum had scored 209 and 195 against Australia and Sri Lanka in 2015 and 2014 on day three and one respectively.
READ: Series win against New Zealand to inspire future Tigers: Domingo
Wounded from the defeat in the first match, New Zealand took the commanding position of the second Test from the ball one. And Bangladesh are going to have some tough days ahead in this Test.
Bangladesh fielded Mohammad Naim, the debutant, and Nurul Hasan Sohan in this Test to replace injured Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Mushfiqur Rahim. While Joy suffered a blow on his right hand that needed three stitches, Mushfiqur is out with a groin injury.
With Mushfiqur being out of the XI, it was the first time in 16 years when Bangladesh was playing a Test without any of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Mushfiqur, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal and Mahmudullah Riyad who had long been considered core-member of Bangladesh’s cricket team in all format.
Series win against New Zealand to inspire future Tigers: Domingo
Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo said a series win against New Zealand will inspire the future generation of Bangladesh cricketers to do well in alien conditions.
He said the win in the first Test was the result of the hard work of the players over the last few months during their tough time.
Bangladesh are all set to take on New Zealand in the second Test on January 9 in Christchurch. The weather in Christchurch is cold and the wicket is also faster than the Tigers had one in Tauranga. So the second Test will be a tough one for the Tigers, believes Doming.
“They now want to do something that no other Bangladesh side has done before and that is to win a series in New Zealand. They are trying to do something very special that can inspire another generation of Bangladeshi cricketers,” Domingo said on Saturday ahead of the second Test.
Also read: Bangladesh Eye Historic Test Series Win in New Zealand
Right-arm fast bowler Ebadot Hossain was the main architect of Bangladesh’s maiden win against New Zealand at their home.
Bangladesh never won an international fixture in New Zealand despite playing 32 matches across formats before the first Test of the ongoing series.
“It’s been a very cool couple of days for the boys. The guys really enjoyed it because they know they had a hard time before in New Zealand. And New Zealand are one of the best sides in the world. You have to play really good cricket to compete with them and beat them. We had a tough few months in all formats,” Domingo added.
Ebadot averaged more than 80 before the first Test in Tauranga. Given his performance in Tests, he was the worst pacer in Bangladesh’s armory. But now, he has become the fast-bowling sensation in Bangladesh, and probably, in the other parts of the cricketing world as well.
Domingo said it was a reward for Ebadot and for the hard work he has done over the last few years.
Also read: Five Defining Moments of Bangladesh’s Historic Test Victory Over New Zealand
Bangladesh are expecting a tougher challenge in Christchurch where they have to negotiate with a faster wicket and challenging condition. But Domingo believes the boys are pumped up to the challenge.
“It’s not often when Bangladeshi pacers can hope for the wicket with some grass on it,” he said. “We have also got some quality bowlers in the squad. We have three high-quality bowlers and they are pretty confident. If we do get early wickets hopefully we can do some damage.”
Along with Ebadot, Taskin Ahmed and Shorfiul Islam have also put their best foot forward in the first match taking three wickets each. Domingo said if they can come up together it will be tough for the hosts to earn an easy win against the confident Tigers.
This series is a part of the ongoing World Test Championship. In the previous cycle of this event, Bangladesh failed to win any match while they also had a bad start to the new cycle when they lost to Pakistan at home. But they bounced back strongly in New Zealand, and for the first time, they are hoping to win a series against the Blackcaps in New Zealand— a rare fate for any Asian team.
It’s wrong that we have no player sans big guns: Shakib
Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan has trashed the idea of the country not having any good players except the big guns.
The allrounder talked to the media on Friday while attending a ceremony of a cellular operator in Dhaka. Shakib signed an agreement with the operator as a brand ambassador.
Read:Mashrafe starts bowling but uncertain about BCL 50-over
“The media thinks there is no player without some four or five players, I think it’s been proved wrong by now,” Shakib told the media. “If the new guys get a chance, they can prove their mettle.”
Bangladesh team is receiving an enormous amount of praise from different parts of the cricketing world for their victorious display in the first Test against New Zealand recently. They beat the Blackcaps in their own backyard by eight wickets— Bangladesh’s first win in New Zealand in any format of the sport.
“The way we started the new year is incredible,” Shakib added. “We have to give credit to every player, support personnel and all. We have failed to do well last year, and some big challenges are coming in this year.”
Young players like Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Shoriful Islam and Ebadot Hossian have done well in this match. Shoriful bagged three wickets in the first innings, while Ebadot bagged six in the second— his best in the format, and it was the first time after 2013 when a Bangladeshi pacer bagged five or more wickets in a Test. And Mahmudul hit 78 in the first innings, playing in his second match.
Read:Five Defining Moments of Bangladesh’s Historic Test Victory Over New Zealand
Shakib is not participating in the New Zealand series for family reasons. He was included in the team initially, but the allrounder later withdrew from the squad citing family reasons and difficulties he faces in strict quarantine.
The allrounder is expected to take part in the 50-over edition of the Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL) starting from January 9 in Sylhet.
We had one goal— to beat New Zealand at their home: Ebadot
After beating New Zealand at their home as the first Asian team in the last decade, Bangladesh’s match-winner, Ebadot Hossain, said it was their goal right from the beginning of the series.
“We had one goal after arriving in New Zealand— to beat them in their soil,” Ebadot told in the post-match interview. “We have played many matches in New Zealand, but we could not get even a single win. So in this outing, we wanted to break the ice ceiling. I hope the future generation will inspire by this win.”
Raed:Roaring Tigers Script Groundbreaking History in New Zealand
In the second innings of New Zealand, Ebadot bagged six wickets conceding 46 runs— the best bowling figures by a Bangladeshi pacer in away Tests. It was the first five-wicket haul for a Bangladeshi pacer after Rabiul Islam who registered a fifer in 2013.
Mominul Haque and his team completed the victory when most Bangladeshis were asleep in winter morning. But the warmth of victory swamped in before the sun rose in the Bengal delta.
Mushfiqur Rahim cut Kyle Jamieson for a four through the square region to complete the victory. Being the most experienced campaigner of the team, Mushfiqur was fittingly played the victory shot while other big guns were out of the setup due to different reasons.
Along with Ebadot, young players like Shorfiul Islam and Mahmudul Hasan Joy have also played important roles in Bangladesh’s historic win. Before this match, Bangladesh played a total of 32 matches in New Zealand across the format.
Read:Tigers script history by registering first Test win against Kiwis in NZ
Pace-bowlers are like second-class citizens in the Bangladesh team when they play at home. But whenever they tour abroad, the pacers are bound to take the extra burden, but they often fail to deliver due to lack of longer version cricket in suitable conditions.
“The conditions are too flat in Bangladesh and we are still learning how to bowl away from home,” Ebadot added mentioning that the bowling coach Ottis Gibson is guiding them with proper care, and he believes the good days are coming.
Another pacer Taskin Ahmed said the win is the result of a process that they followed carefully. He said: “We did not think much about the result. We just wanted to play according to our plan. We give our 110 percent to do well.”
Tigers script history by registering first Test win against Kiwis in NZ
When Mushfiqur Rahim cracked Kyle Jamieson a cut to the off-side for a boundary in Mount Maunganui, most Bangladeshis were fast asleep.
Only two runs were needed to upset World Test Champions New Zealand in their home turf, and Mushfiqur ran into roaring, fisting bumps and hugging non-striker Momiminul Haque as he hit the winning four.
The sun had not risen then in Bangladesh, but few did wake up across the country to witness the famous Test win of Bangladesh on TV or mobile screen— undoubtedly the best Test result of Bangladesh so far in 22 years.
“It was teamwork. Everyone was keen to win the match and they put their hand up in all three departments,” the Bangladesh Test captain said. “We won because of the bowlers. They were outstanding in both the first and second innings. They did all the hard work and bowled in the right areas. Ebadot was unbelievable to us.”
After Ebadot Hossain’s history-making six-wicket haul for 46, it was only a matter of time for Bangladesh to score 40 runs in the fourth innings of the match with a lot of overs were remaining. Despite losing Shadman Islam early, Bangladesh’s win was a cakewalk, and eventually, it came and ended a 32-match drought in New Zealand with eight wickets in hand.
The platform was set by Ebadot in the third session of the fourth day when he ran a riot taking three wickets of New Zealand in quick succession after a boring stand by Will Young and Ross Taylor.
After Ebadot removed Young with a wonderful delivery that the latter seemed to not have expected, the floodgate was open and two more wickets came in two successive overs of Ebadot.
Also read: Unfazed by names, I played deliveries, Mahmudul says after his maiden fifty vs NZ
Bangladesh hold firm after imperious batting display
Bangladesh team probably enjoyed the best two days of their Test cricket in New Zealand so far.
The initial success came up when they removed the last five New Zealand batters within 70 runs on top of their day one total and restricted them under 350. Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and Shoriful Islam proved their capibilty once again.
And now, they batted more than 150 overs and scored more than 400 runs and they are yet to be all out!
Read:Bangladesh takes lead after Mominul, Liton heroics
At the end of day three of the first Test against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui, Bangladesh are leading by 73 runs with four wickets in hand— a rare success Bangladesh team is going through on the soil of New Zealand.
Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Mominul Haque and Liton Das— all had a good chance to register their maiden century in New Zealand, but they fell short. Despite that agony, Bangladesh are far ahead of the hosts in this Test, at least, at this stage.
Mominul and Liton added 158 runs in the fifth wicket stand. The stand was broken when Mominul fell for 88— short of 12 runs of his second Test century abroad. His first away ton came against Sri Lanka last year.
Bangladesh ended day two at 175 for two with Joy and Mominul remaining unbeaten for 70 and eight respectively.
Joy fell for 78 after adding only eight to his overnight total while Mominul remained firm at the other end of the wicket.
It was Joy’s maiden fifty in Test cricket. Before this match, he played only one Test. The 21-year-old batter was one of the best in the world during his U-19 cricketing days. He had a century in the last U-19 World Cup that Bangladesh won beating India in the final.
Mushfiqur Rahim failed to impress as he fell for 12 off 53 balls.
Read:Shanto, Joy hit fifties as Bangladesh reply strongly
In the next wicket stand, Liton joined Mominul and made New Zealand bowlers toil. Mominul registered his 15th fifty in Test, and right after that, Liton recorded his 11th fifty in the format.
After Mominul, Trent Boult also removed Liton for 86. One ball earlier of his dismissal, Liton survived a caught-behind appeal from New Zealand, but eventually, he fell prey to the same kind of dismissal.
The onus was on Yasir Ali and Mehidy Hasan Miraz to survive the day playing all the remaining overs, and they successfully did that. This pair batted more than 10 overs and survived the day ensuring a 73-run first innings lead.
New Zealand bowlers tried everything they could. They posed many tough questions they possibly could, and to utter surprise for many, the Bangladeshi batters managed to answer.
They managed to tackle pace-swingings and bouncers from Tim Southee, Boult and Neil Wagner. Wagner came up with his typical strength full with short-balls. But Bangladeshi batters were smart enough to play him despite giving him three wickets. Along with Wagner, Boult bagged three wickets too.
With two days to go in this Test, Bangladesh are clearly ahead of the hosts, but they have to work harder in the remaining six sessions to get the best result against New Zealand.
Bangladesh takes lead after Mominul, Liton heroics
In the first Test of the two-match series against New Zealand, both Mominul Haque and Liton Das hit a fifty each as Bangladesh secured a first-innings lead which was rising at the last session of day three at Mount Maunganui.
Mominul and Liton added 158 runs in the fifth wicket stand. The stand was broken when Mominul fell for 88— short of 12 runs of his second Test century abroad.
Read:NZ vs BAN 1st Test 2021: Bangladesh Sustains Hope Till the End of Day 2
Bangladesh ended day two at 175 for two with Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Mominul remaining unbeaten for 70 and eight respectively.
Joy fell for 78 after adding only eight to his overnight total while Mominul remained firm at the other end of the wicket.
It was Joy’s maiden fifty in Test cricket. Before this match, he played only one Test. The 21-year-old batter was one of the best in the world during his U-19 cricketing days. He had a century in the last U-19 World Cup that Bangladesh won beating India in the final.
Mushfiqur Rahim failed to impress as he fell for 12 off 53 balls.
In the next wicket stand, Liton joined Mominul and made New Zealand bowlers toil. Mominul registered his 15th fifty in Test, and right after that, Liton recorded his 11th fifty in the format.
Read:Shanto, Joy hit fifties as Bangladesh reply strongly
After Mominul, Trent Boult also removed Liton for 86. One ball earlier of his dismissal, Liton survived a caught-behind appeal from New Zealand, but eventually, he fell prey to the same kind of dismissal.
At the end of 145 overs, Bangladesh were batting at 370 for six in reply to New Zealand’s first innings of 328. Bangladesh already secured a lead of 42 runs with four wickets in hand.
Tour match: New Zealand X1 score 71 for 5 against Bangladesh on day-1
Hosts New Zealand Eleven scored 71 for 5 in 27.3 overs against touring Bangladesh in the rain-interrupted first day of the two-day preparatory tour match at Bay Oval-2 of Mount Maunganui in New Zealand on Tuesday.
Bangladesh captain Mominul Haque won the toss and invited the home team to bat first in a rain soaked delay start ground and took its fruit immediately grabbing three early wickets --Luke Georgeson (6), Jacob Cumming (1) and captain Devon Conway (0) --for just 8 runs in 6.2 overs.
Read:Sunzamul bags eight to help North Zone register first win
However, Jacob Bhula (batting 24), Jack Boyle (20) and Mitch Renwick (18) repaired the early damage scoring double figure while wicket keeper Ma’ara Ave was in batting with four runs.
Two Bangladeshi pacers Abu Jayed Rahi and Taskin Ahmed bowled superbly to share all five wickets of the day.
Abu Jayed grabbed three wickets for 27 runs in his nine-over spell while Taskin Ahmed claimed two wickets for 26 runs in 8.3 overs.
Read:U-19 Asia Cup: Bangladesh emerges group champion to reach semifinal
Earlier, Rain stopped the match on three occasions. First at 9.3 overs when NZ scored 14 for 3, 2nd at 25.4 overs with NZ making 62 for 4 and finally at 27.3 over to fold the day’s innings for 71 for 5.
The first of the two-match Test Series between Bangladesh and New Zealand will begin on January 1 at the Bay Oval-1 Mount Maunganui.
It’s tough to play all formats together: Shakib
Bangladesh star allrounder Shakib Al Hasan said that it’s tough for him to continue playing all three formats of the game due to the pandemic-forced situation.
The allrounder recently skipped the tour of New Zealand for a two-match Test series.
It was not the first time when Shakib skipped a series due to his personal reasons. In recent interviews, Shakib said it’s getting tough for him to spend quality time with his young family due to his business in cricket.
Also read: Ajaz disappointed being overlooked in Tests vs Bangladesh
While talking to a private TV channel, Shakib said he knows what is the most important format for him to take part in.
“I know what the format should get my preference,” he said. “I think the time has come for me to think about how I play Test.” Shakib clearly indicated that he is not interested to play every Test match Bangladesh play.
Bangladesh’s neighbouring Test-playing nation India is looking to introduce a good rotation policy to manage the workload of the players. But Bangladesh is yet to make such a move.
“I’m not saying that I’m retiring from Tests,” Shakib added. “But I can refrain from playing T20s after playing the 2022 World Cup. I might play Tests and ODIs then. But it’s not possible to play all three formats together.”
Also read: Shakib Al Hasan's next stop: Bank director
The 34-year-old allrounder also said the pandemic-forced quarantine is also taking a toll on him. He said that staying in quarantine feels like ‘staying in jail”.
Shakib has a tendency to live in the USA with his wife and young children. He is currently in the USA and will be there until the next season of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) takes place.
According to the latest development, the new season of BPL will begin on January 21, and Shakib is expected to play for the team based in Barishal. However, it’s not official yet.