In a thrilling turn of events, Bangladesh clinched a historic victory over New Zealand in the first Test of the series, showcasing a stellar bowling performance in the fourth innings. The Bangla Tigers dominated the Tim Southee-led side throughout the match, disrupting their ability to establish solid partnerships in the middle.
A standout performer for Bangladesh was Taijul Islam, who delivered exceptional performances in both innings, contributing significantly to their triumph by a margin of 160 runs. Reflecting on the defeat, Southee acknowledged that his team struggled to maintain pressure for an extended duration, pinpointing this as a crucial factor in their loss.
The Bangladesh bowlers earned praise for their precision in line and length, exploiting conditions unfamiliar to most New Zealand batters. The challenging conditions led to the Kiwis’ inability to leave a lasting impact on the game.
Southee credited skipper Najmul Shanto for a timely century in the second innings, shaping the course of the match. Contributions from Mushfiqur Rahim and Mehidy Hasan Miraz further bolstered Bangladesh’s total to 338 runs in the second innings.
Speaking about the opposition’s bowling, Southee noted the accuracy and effectiveness of the Bangladesh bowlers, emphasizing that batting becomes progressively challenging in this part of the world as the Test progresses.
Stressing the importance of partnerships, Southee expressed the need for the batting unit to build significant stands, a task they fell short of in the match.
Despite the loss, Southee defended his players and conveyed optimism about learning from the experience to put up a better performance in the upcoming final Test scheduled for December 6. He dismissed fatigue from the ODI World Cup as a factor, citing the influx of new players into the squad.