Story Bangladesh: From Minnows to Tigers! (End of England tour)

[surendar]

All Bangladesh need to do here is, to retain the momentum on Day 4 as well ( which they have got from their hard work ). I can sense a Bangla victory somewhere.

 

[qpeedore]

Pitch report and weather forecast – Day 4

The pitch today is just starting to take more spin, and one particular delivery yesterday is proof of that. Shakib’s ball to Taylor spun almost at a right angle and more of the same is expected today. That is not to say that the seamers will not enjoy things either. They have been in the game from the start and today is no different.

Today is forecast to be the hottest day of the match and with minimal cloud cover, hydration would be key before cramps start setting in.

No interviews this morning. The announcers said that the Bangladeshis were out on the field early, doing their warm-ups and fielding drills and they did not want to break their focus.

Play – Day 4

Bangladesh had a further 5 wickets to take and they wanted to get those wickets cheaply. They were aggressive to Franklin but a little on the defensive side to Kitchen. Haque needed no fielders when he dismissed Kitchen, though. He landed one just on the batsman’s leg stump and beat everything to just take the off stump. Kitchen was on his way for 44.

Following this was a period of several tight overs until the new ball was due. Bangladesh had two seamers who were tired by that point but they took the ball anyway, Shakib and Sharif would be the two men to share it.

Shakib, with new ball in hand

Despite being tight, they were not successful, and New Zealand held the bowlers off until the lunch break. Less than 50 runs were scored in the session but the Kiwis were hanging in there.

It took some more tight overs before Bangladesh got the breakthrough. Haque bowled Franklin for 45 from 177 balls. A slow innings but one that was needed under the circumstances.

Sharif then had Tuffey LBW a few overs later for a stubborn 28 from 110 balls. Gillespie only lasted two balls before he was bowled by the same man for a duck.

Southee showed some ability with the bat as he fought and stuck in the crease, hitting 5 fours in the process. By the time he was out LBW by Shakib, he had taken the lead past 250 and ensured that he himself would have something to bowl at.

Tim Southee played a few shots

End of New Zealand innings – 293/10, McCullum 47, Haque 3-44
Bangladesh need 267 to win

New Zealand - 2nd Innings
----------------------------------------------
J Raval         c & b Mahmud              33
B McCullum      c Nadimuddin b Mahmud     47
J Ryder         c Islam b Sharif          18
R Taylor        b Al Hasan                13
A Kitchen       b Haque                   44
S Wells         c Nadimuddin b Haque      18
J Franklin      c Nadimuddin b Haque      45
D Tuffey        lbw b Sharif              28
T Southee       lbw b Al Hasan            27
M Gillespie     b Sharif                  0
B Arnel         not out                   4
----------------------------------------------
Extras: (nb4,b8,lb4)                      16
TOTAL: (all out, 120.1 overs)             293

**********************************************

                O       M       R       W
----------------------------------------------
D Mahmud        33      7       82      2
R Haque         30      8       44      3
M Sharif        28      6       70      3
S Al Hasan      19.1    4       52      2
M Mahmudullah   10      1       33      0
----------------------------------------------
Fall of Wickets:
1-47  2-90  3-109  4-127  5-160  
6-205  7-255  8-260  9-260  10-293

Tea was taken immediately and the Bangladeshi openers walked out after the break looking determined to make their impact on the chase. The pitch was great for bowling, though, and it would definitely take some getting.

Of course nobody would tell Tamim and Nafees that. They had their moments where they looked a bit shaky, but they hung in there and soon brought up the fifty partnership off of 88 balls.

Nafees was the first one out, bowled by Gillespie for 37. The ball was nothing too special, just bowled from around the wicket to the left hander and going in with the angle.

Nafees walks off

Mahmadullah came to the crease and he was more cautious in his start this time, staying around for longer than just a few balls this time.

Bangladesh would have gotten a scare when Gillespie bowled one that Tamim tried to pull away into the onside. The ball hit the bottom edge of the bat and hit Tamim right on his kneecap. He went down immediately and soon enough the physio came out to check on him. After a few stretches and a shot of magic spray, Tamim was back on his feet to the applause of the crowd.

Tamim falls to the ground after injuring himself

He only had 4 overs to play out until the end of the day when he would get further treatment, and he and Mahmadullah played those overs well enough.

End of Day 4 – Bangladesh 96/1, Iqbal 44*, Gillespie 1-24

Southee speaks to the cameras after play. He says that 260-odd was not going to be easy to chase, even with the start that Bangladesh had. The bowlers would be looking to bowl the side out tomorrow and they had a real chance because Bangladesh would no doubt be looking for the victory and that would create chances.

 

[Aditya]

Iqbal to make century!

 

[qpeedore]

Pitch report and weather forecast – Day 5

This Day 5 pitch definitely has some demons in it. The seamers have got themselves one hell of a surface to work with here and the spinners won’t be too disappointed either.

The clouds will be out early on but as the day progresses those clouds will give way to clear blue skies and perfect cricketing conditions.

Shakib is interviewed this morning. He says that the team was going for the victory but it would not be easy at all. The New Zealanders had a good bowling attack and the batsmen had to be careful or else they would see a few wickets tumbling fast.

Play – Day 5

Despite everyone thinking that Bangladesh would win, the match could swing either way and Bangladesh had a history of collapsing, especially when the pressure was on.

The runs came in singles early on, but that was enough for Tamim to get to fifty, his second of the match. At the other end, Mahmadullah was the first to play an aggressive stroke and he connected well with it, the ball sailing over the fence for six.

Mahmadullah swivels and hits a big one

He was out three overs after that six, however. There was some doubt as to whether or not he actually did get an edge to McCullum. Certainly the fielders thought he did, and so did the umpire. Replays were not conclusive and he might have just been unlucky with the decision. But he had to go, and he walked off for 32 with the team on 131 for 2.

Saleh did not last long. A single ball, to be precise. This time there was no doubt about the edge and McCullum took a great catch to give Gillespie yet another wicket. He was on a hat-trick as well. Hom was the man under pressure, but the ball was too wide for him to offer a shot and he avoided having his name in the history books for the wrong reasons.

Tamim seemed to realize that if Bangladesh were to win, a lot would depend on him and he went about it the right way by playing in his aggressive style, taking the bowlers to all parts of the park. Hom was more circumspect in his shot selection but by no means was he any less effective. He hit 4 fours before edging on to slip when he was on 22. But it was the captain himself who let the chance burst through his hands and Hom was let off.

Taylor needed a little more practice like this

Tamim was out in the last over before lunch as he tried to get another ball to the boundary but he could only find the man at deep point. He went for a well-played 88 and Bangladesh only needed a further 81 at that point.

After lunch, Arnel bowled a beautiful bouncer to get rid of Islam cheaply. Islam could not drop his hands in time and the ball took the glove to fly to second slip. The ball was dying quickly, but Wells dived forward well and took a great catch. Bangladesh were 192 for 5 at that point.

Shakib came out and knew that nothing special was needed, but New Zealand were bowling well and Southee had Hom LBW for 32 just a few overs later. He then had Shakib playing at one away from himself and the ball went right to short leg. Bangladesh were 205 for 7 and still a further 62 were needed.

Mahmud and Nadimuddin took extra precautions to preserve their wickets but also get runs whenever they were available. When New Zealand took the new ball with 15 minutes to go until tea, only 24 more runs were needed but things could still swing either way. The frontline seamers were tired, however, and Taylor decided to risk bringing Franklin into the attack.

The risk paid off just four balls into his spell when he had Nadimuddin edging to McCullum. Still 24 runs were needed, but only 2 wickets in hand and a brand new ball with which to bowl.

Franklin bowled within himself but it was enough

Haque and Mahmud just about managed to take the team to tea still needing 15 to win. This match was going down to the final session of the final day.

The two tail enders walked out after the break with one job in mind. They had to get those 15 runs by any means necessary. New Zealand would have to take the final two wickets by any means necessary if they wanted to win. Something was going to give one way or the other.

Arnel bowled the first over after the interval. He and McCullum swore that they had Mahmud edging the first ball but the umpire turned the appeal down. Replays showed that the bat had brushed the front pad and not the ball. Later in the over Arnel had Mahmud reaching for a wider ball that was too good for him. But he did not get the edge and he survived.

Jaime Siddons looks concerned for his team

He was out in the next over, however, LBW to a straight one from Southee for 18. Bangladesh needed 14 to win and 1 wicket in hand. Sharif’s highest Test score was 23 and he did have 5 first class fifties to his name. Haque actually had more success at domestic level, with 2 hundreds and 9 fifties. Could they take their team home?

Arnel was not to be defied. He was in the middle of a wonderful spell and he had Sharif LBW for 1 to seal the victory for New Zealand. A terrific match.

End of Bangladesh innings – 254/10, Iqbal 88, Southee 4-83
New Zealand win by 12 runs

Bangladesh - 2nd Innings
----------------------------------------------
T Iqbal         c Gillespie b Southee     88
S Nafees        b Gillespie               37
M Mahmudullah   c McCullum b Gillespie    32
R Saleh         c McCullum b Gillespie    0
S Hom           lbw b Southee             32
N Islam         c Wells b Arnel           5
S Al Hasan      c Arnel b Southee         2
N Nadimuddin    c McCullum b Franklin     19
D Mahmud        lbw b Southee             18
R Haque         not out                   4
M Sharif        lbw b Arnel               1
----------------------------------------------
Extras: (nb4,w4,b8)                       16
TOTAL: (all out, 92.3 overs)              254

**********************************************

                O       M       R       W
----------------------------------------------
T Southee       23      0       83      4
B Arnel         23.3    6       42      2
M Gillespie     21      5       64      3
D Tuffey        20      2       44      0
S Wells         4       2       12      0
J Franklin      1       0       1       1
----------------------------------------------
Fall of Wickets:
1-62  2-131  3-131  4-186  5-192  
6-204  7-205  8-243  9-253  10-254

At the presentation ceremony, Saleh says that this defeat is hard for him and the team. If just three batsmen had hit another boundary each the result could have been theirs. That they came so close is proof that the team was improving with each match but nothing improves morale more than winning matches.

Ross Taylor says that for a moment the Bangladeshis had him sweating but the bowlers, especially Southee and Arnel, stood up and showed that they have the ability to perform under pressure. He is happy for the victory and now the team can go into the next match with a 1-0 lead in the series.

The man of the match, for his match haul of 9 wickets for 133 runs, is Mark Gillespie. He says that it is not often in international cricket these days that bowlers get a pitch that helps them right from the start, but he was happy to see it here. He hopes that the second pitch is just as helpful and looks forward to it.

 

[6ry4nj]

No doubt it ending up so close makes the loss all the more tragic. But it was such a great end to a great game! One to tell the grand-kids about ...

 

[Gaurav_7]

So close yet so far. More is expected from Saleh and Shakib really than what they did.

 

[qpeedore]

It's a tight loss and a tough one that hurts, but I wouldn't blame Shakib or Saleh. They both made good scores in the first innings.

Close thing though. First day of the next match up in a couple of days.

 

[qpeedore]

The first Test was very close. This one should be another cracker. Not going to be easy to pick a winner at all.

Pitch report and weather forecast ? Day 1

This pitch is going to be a spinner?s paradise sooner rather than later. Batting will never be an easy task at any time in this one, but it will not be beneficial to be batting last on this one. Expect the ball to turn almost square from Day 1.

Overhead, perfect conditions for Test cricket. The sun is out but it is not too hot at the moment. Should be a great match.

Squads

Bangladesh
Tamim Iqbal (Bat)
Shahriar Nafees (Bat)
Mohammed Mahmadullah (All)
Rajin Saleh (CAPT - Bat)
Shuvagoto Hom (Bat)
Naeem Islam (All)
Shakib Al Hasan (All)
Nadimuddin (WK)
Dolar Mahmud (Bowl)
Mohammed Sharif (Bowl)
Rezaul Haque (Bowl)

An unchanged team for Bangladesh and it seems like the way to go right now. The bowlers need to settle into the squad and learn to bowl in partnerships before they will see more success, and giving them the chance to play together as much as possible will only be a good thing.

Watch out for

Tamim Iqbal ? Half centuries in both innings of the first Test and his form just keeps getting better and better. Bangladesh?s best batsman has to set things in place right from the start.

Shakib Al Hasan ? He is not the biggest spinner of the ball but he will get some purchase right from the start. His ability to deceive the batsmen will be on show whenever he comes to bowl.

New Zealand
Jeet Raval (Bat)
Brendan McCullum (WKB)
Jesse Ryder (Bat)
Ross Taylor (CAPT ? Bat)
Anaru Kitchen (Bat)
Sam Wells (All)
James Franklin (All)
Daryl Tuffey (Bowl)
Tim Southee (Bowl)
Mark Gillespie (Bowl)
Brent Arnel (Bowl)

An unchanged New Zealand team as well. The winning combination is retained and after pulling out the victory in the last match, they would want to keep the team together. But going in without a spinner on a pitch that is very conducive to spin might be something they will come to regret.

Watch out for

Jesse Ryder ? He made full use of his innings after he was dropped on 10 in the last match. If he gets going again, Bangladesh will have their work cut out for them.

Mark Gillespie ? 9 wickets in the first Test, including a great 6-for, has made this Kiwi the biggest threat to Bangladesh when they bat. He will want to repeat his performance in this match for certain.

The toss

Saleh tossed and Taylor incorrectly called heads. Saleh had no second thoughts about batting first. He said that this pitch is going to be a tough batsman?s pitch and that batting last is going to be a challenge. If they can get themselves a decent score in the first innings, they could take control from the start.

Taylor says that he would have liked to bat first too, but there is something in the pitch for the bowlers and he has the sort of experience necessary in his bowling attack to use the conditions well.

Play ? Day 1

Gillespie bowled a mixture of deliveries in his first over, testing the pitch to find the right line and length to bowl. It was not very threatening at any time, however, and Tamim negotiated it successfully. At the other end, Southee took a consistent line and length from the start, going around the wicket to the left handers and aiming right for the stumps.

Bangladesh?s first boundary came off of the bat of Tamim as he smacked one through the on side that bounced just in front of the ropes for four. But Bangladesh were cautious, and for good reason as every now and then the ball did something funny off the pitch to keep the openers on their toes.

Hawkeye demonstrates the uneven bounce

No wickets fell, however, and with just a few minutes to go until lunch, New Zealand relaxed the pressure a bit and the batsmen made them pay. First Nafees hit a straight six off of Gillespie before Tamim slashed one over point for a flat six in Gillespie?s next over. The openers confidently walked back into the dressing room at lunch with the score on 87 and both men in the 40s.


After lunch New Zealand started to bowl more aggressively once again and they sought to keep the batsmen pinned back. The runs were few and far between but Nafees reached his fifty first with a leg glance to the fine leg boundary for four. Tamim then got there in the next over with a quick single to the right of mid on.

Bangladeshis had a lot to cheer about

New Zealand?s first real chance came finally when Arnel had one coming in sharply off the pitch to beat Tamim?s bat and rap him on the pads. The Kiwis went up but the umpire shook his head and the ball would have just went past the leg stump.

Bangladesh continued doing their thing and taking the runs where they came. No risks were necessary and they took none. Even Tamim was unusually defensive but he was finally out hitting to midwicket for 64 off of 136 balls. The opening partnership was broken for 139.

Gillespie soon had another wicket. The very next ball, actually. Mahmadullah could not cope with the movement that he got from the pitch and he was out LBW for a duck. Gillespie had to wait another over for his hat-trick delivery, though.

Mahmadullah was disappointed with himself

That over passed without fuss and the new man Saleh, the captain, would be facing the hat-trick ball. Two slips and a gully were in place and the only man really near the boundary was fine leg. Everyone else was on or around the square.

Gillespie bowled. Saleh shaped to play at it but pulled away just as the ball passed him. Hat-trick avoided. The scattering of supporters cheered.

Saleh looked good as he got into his innings and showed this with a six over third man that came from a well-timed shot. The final over before tea he proceeded to hit Southee for two consecutive fours, one through third man and the other past fine leg. Bangladesh went to tea on 177 for 2.

The Kiwis chose to attack the ominous-looking Saleh after tea and the ploy worked almost immediately. Just three overs after the break Southee got him LBW with another one that got big assistance from the pitch. He went for 26.

Nafees steadily entered the 90s at the other end. He kept watching the ball carefully and it paid off when he pushed one past the short extra cover to run a couple and bring up a determined century. Good cause for celebration and the guys in the dressing room gave him a standing ovation.

The shot that brought Nafees to his century

It was a chanceless innings until he was beaten from one by Tuffey. Yet another LBW decision to one that came in off the pitch. The ball was almost 80 overs old and the seamers were still getting it to move around after bouncing. Nafees went for 106 from all of 238 balls.

Islam and Hom were very careful as they negotiated the bowling attack. New Zealand took the new ball with about 20 minutes to go until the close of play. But the two men were able to successfully negotiate that time and when play ended Bangladesh would have been reasonably pleased with their position on a day when runs were hard to come by.

End of Day 1 ? Bangladesh 248/4, Nafees 106, Gillespie 2-74

Nafees is congratulated on his century after play ends. He is asked about the difficulty of batting on the pitch. He says that it was not at easy at all. Batsmen have to adjust their natural game because while the ball was coming onto the bat at a decent speed, it was hard to anticipate the lateral movement. He thinks that Bangladesh can pass 400 tomorrow if they bat well and with Hom and Islam with starts behind them, that does not seem impossible.

 

[Dutchmen]

Nafees has gone well and it's nice see him back out there, I was very surprised when I've seen hawkeye, but I'm not getting too far ahead of myself because it's from Cricket Australia.

 

[qpeedore]

Yes, Dutchmen, the Hawkeye graphic was something I searched a long time for and that was the best one I could find that demonstrated uneven bounce. Pretend it's the real thing! I'm no good at making my own things so...whatever I find on Cricinfo and Google would have to do in terms of graphics and pictures.

Pitch report and weather forecast – Day 2

The batsmen will continue to struggle today and despite the outright seamers taking all 4 wickets to fall yesterday, all New Zealand have in the line of slowing things up a bit are the medium pacers. Bangladesh will be happier if they end up bowling today as the pitch will just keep on spinning and that will prove to be a problem to batsmen. The weather will have no effect on anything as today is forecast to be a sunny day throughout.

Raval speaks to the interviewers this morning. He says that fielding is of incredible importance because the bowlers were performing well on a helpful pitch, but if the fielders did not add pressure as well, then nothing would be gained from good bowling. He hopes that Bangladesh can be dismissed for under 350, because it would not be easy batting when the Kiwis get out there.

Play – Day 2

Islam had a close caught behind appeal three balls into the day but the ball brushed his shirt and not the bat as the Kiwis thought. They bowled superbly and Bangladesh found scoring almost impossible. That is, until Hom decided to unleash his power on the attack about 45 minutes into the day, taking Gillespie for two fours and a six. He brought up his first Test fifty with the second four and he celebrated it well before he put his head down once more.

He continued to play his shots, flashing and flashing hard whenever he did. The rewards came and his score jumped up several notches. The partnership swelled as he progressed, growing past 100 as Bangladesh were looking good.

Hom lost his partner Islam at the other end, though, bowled by Southee for 41. It was impossible to stop Hom, however. He brought up his maiden Test century off of the final ball before lunch, hitting another four. He hit 15 fours and one six up to that point and went into the hut seeming on top of the world.

Southee broke the partnership but could not stop Hom

A few overs after lunch, Hom hit one just past the slips and called for a single. Shakib hesitated but Hom kept running. Eventually Shakib took off but it was too late and he was run out almost by a mile for 12. Bangladesh were 377 for 6.

Shakib tries to scamper home but was well short

Nadimuddin was gone for a duck after only 4 balls, bowled by a beauty from Arnel. Hom was batting with the tail now and he tried to farm the strike but a ball from Mahmud was too good for him and he went following another LBW decision. He made 11.

Hom’s gem of an innings was eventually over when his concentration lapsed for a moment and he left a delivery from Gillespie alone. Wrong choice as it hit his pads outside the off stump but as he offered no shot he had to be given out.

Haque and Sharif took the score past 400 before Tuffey ended the innings by bowling Sharif for 4.

End of Bangladesh innings – 411/10, Hom 116, Gillespie 4-136

**********************************************
Bangladesh v New Zealand
2nd Test Match - 8 Dec 2012
**********************************************

Bangladesh - 1st Innings
----------------------------------------------
T Iqbal         c Arnel b Gillespie       64
S Nafees        lbw b Tuffey              106
M Mahmudullah   lbw b Gillespie           0
R Saleh         lbw b Southee             26
S Hom           lbw b Gillespie           116
N Islam         b Southee                 41
S Al Hasan      run out                   12
N Nadimuddin    b Arnel                   0
D Mahmud        lbw b Gillespie           11
R Haque         not out                   18
M Sharif        b Tuffey                  4
----------------------------------------------
Extras: (nb6,w3,lb4)                      13
TOTAL: (all out, 139.2 overs)             411

**********************************************

                O       M       R       W
----------------------------------------------
M Gillespie     38      3       136     4
T Southee       34      9       84      2
B Arnel         33      8       88      1
D Tuffey        27.2    6       74      2
S Wells         7       1       25      0
----------------------------------------------
Fall of Wickets:
1-139  2-139  3-185  4-219  5-335  
6-377  7-378  8-389  9-396  10-411

Bangladesh had made a good score given the conditions and now New Zealand had a difficult 15 minutes or so to bat out until tea. Bangladesh would have loved a wicket in that time. That wicket went to Sharif, who got Raval with one that pitched way outside leg stump but came back in an amazing amount to bowl the batsman behind his legs for only 1. New Zealand could only make one further run in the 3 overs and 4 balls until tea and they went into the pavilion at 2 for 1.

After tea the batsmen found scoring very difficult. There were several maidens due to great bowling. McCullum tried to up the scoring and he took advantage of an early call of no ball by the umpire to take Sharif for a six over midwicket. Sharif got his man off of the next ball, though when he got one to come back in and hit the pads for an easy LBW decision. New Zealand were 32 for 2.

McCullum hit a big six but was out to the very next delivery

As the opening bowlers tired and started being hit to the boundary, the first changes came on to bowl. Haque bowled a decent first over but had one poor ball that went to the boundary. Shakib was the man brought in to bowl at the other end and it took him two balls to find a good line. The third ball was almost the perfect ball as he landed the ball just on the off stump and spun it away. The ball just touched the edge and went to Nadimuddin for an easy catch. New Zealand were 58 for 3 at that point.

Kitchen wasted no time in getting himself underway, hitting his first ball for a couple and then his second for four through cover. Shakib thought he had him LBW in his next over, but the ball was doing too much and would probably have missed the stumps despite hitting in line.

Shakib appeals unsuccessfully for LBW

New Zealand started to look to bat out until stumps, but Bangladesh had other plans in mind and with the penultimate over of the day, Haque produced a brilliant ball that took Kitchen’s middle stump out of the ground.

New Zealand would have been happy to lose no further wickets in the remainder of the two overs and they had a lot of work to do on Day 3 if they wanted to save the match.

End of Day 2 – New Zealand 86/4, Ryder 34, Sharif 2-30

Nadimuddin is the man interviewed after play ends. He is asked about the difficulty of wicketkeeping on a pitch where the ball moved around so much. He says that it definitely was not easy and he had to throw himself around all over the place to prevent the ball from going past him, but he is in the team for that and he knows it is his job. He thinks that the bowlers have done well so far and New Zealand looked like they could be all out for about 200 or even less tomorrow.

 

[qpeedore]

I apologise for the lack of consistent, regular updates. Medical school is a bitch when it comes to having a social (or internet) life. Even though I have up until the England series written totally, it's tough finding the time to update. But anyway, here's Day 3 of what looks to be an intriguing Test.

Pitch report and weather forecast – Day 3

The pitch today continues to deteoriate, and the presence of footmarks on both sides of the wicket now just makes things harder for the batsmen. Expect the ball to beat the bat regularly and the runs to be hard to find.

Analysis this morning instead of interviews. The announcers tried to highlight as best as they could the amount of turn and seam movement that the bowlers were getting from the pitch. Hawkeye helped that analysis a great deal but it still did not beat the replays of the action itself. Some balls seemed to defy explanation, but the analysts did a decent job of it and as play was about to begin it was clear that the batsmen had a tough job ahead of them.

Play – Day 3

New Zealand started timidly. Bangladesh started aggressively. But the seamers who started the day were not that effective early on and they soon gave rise to the spinners Shakib and Mahmadullah. They were hit for boundaries as well as Ryder approached fifty and Wells got himself into the 30s at a good pace. Their partnership approached the fifty mark as well and they got there soon enough. New Zealand would have been happy for that.

Jesse Ryder played well along with Sam Wells

Ryder got to his landmark with a single to mid on. Wells was not to get there, however, as Mahmadullah finally got the breakthrough after many overs of toiling in the hot sun. He got one to turn just enough to beat the bat and clip the off stump, dislodging the bail. Wells went for 44 with the score at 151 for 5.

With the aggressive Wells back in the pavilion, Ryder decided to settle down and the runs dried up for a few overs. His eyes lit up when he saw one heading down the leg side from Mahmadullah, but the ball spun sharply after pitching and turned from outside leg to beat the sweep shot and take leg stump. Ryder was out for 57.

Vice-captain Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmadullah celebrate the fall of Ryder

Franklin and Tuffey were careful in their shot selections and they batted through until lunch without losing any further wickets. They needed a further 21 to avoid the follow on, but it seemed unlikely that it would be a problem.

The Bangladesh team walked out after lunch and got into a huddle. In the centre, Saleh was trying to motivate his team and as the Kiwi batsmen walked past them, they broke and went to their respective positions.

Franklin took the sting out of the bowlers, however. Mahmud was not having the best of days and he took the brunt of the attack, going for a six at one point that went high over the head of mid on. The follow on target was avoided with ease and the batsmen looked like they could just keep going. The partnership crossed 50 and Bangladesh started to falter a bit in the field.

Bangladesh took the new ball immediately, hoping that it would change their fortunes. That was not the case and the runs kept coming. No matter how the field was set, the two men in the middle made it look easy.

James Franklin and Daryl Tuffey resisted Bangladesh

Franklin even got to fifty as he resisted the bowlers. Tuffey entered the 40s just as the partnership passed the century mark and New Zealand went to tea looking like the team on top despite still having a big deficit to erase.

Immediately after tea Saleh decided to throw the ball to the partnership breaker in the last match, Tamim. That ploy worked once again as Tamim had Tuffey trying to play one down the leg side but he could only get it off the face and into the hands of the leg slip. He was finally out for 47 after sharing a stand of 115 with Franklin.

With a new man in at one end, Saleh brought his strike bowlers back into the attack and Sharif struck soon enough, removing Southee for a duck before getting the wickets of Gillespie and Arnel a few balls apart to give him his first ever five-for in Tests.

End of New Zealand innings – 292/10, Franklin 74*, Sharif 5-66

**********************************************

New Zealand - 1st Innings
----------------------------------------------
J Raval         b Sharif                  1
B McCullum      lbw b Sharif              21
J Ryder         b M'udullah               57
R Taylor        c Nadimuddin b Al Hasan   9
A Kitchen       b Haque                   12
S Wells         b M'udullah               44
J Franklin      not out                   74
D Tuffey        c Islam b Iqbal           47
T Southee       lbw b Sharif              0
M Gillespie     lbw b Sharif              6
B Arnel         b Sharif                  0
----------------------------------------------
Extras: (nb9,w1,b9,lb2)                   21
TOTAL: (all out, 110.4 overs)             292

**********************************************

                O       M       R       W
----------------------------------------------
D Mahmud        21      6       38      0
M Sharif        23.4    3       66      5
R Haque         18      3       52      1
S Al Hasan      26      4       60      1
M Mahmudullah   15      0       51      2
N Islam         6       1       14      0
T Iqbal         1       1       0       1
----------------------------------------------
Fall of Wickets:
1-1  2-32  3-58  4-83  5-151  
6-163  7-278  8-278  9-292  10-292

**********************************************

Bangladesh had a lead of 119 and an hour’s play to go until the end of the day. The Kiwis would want two or three wickets to fall in that hour. Anything more would be wonderful.

Tamim and Nafees did not let the bowlers or the pitch get to them. Everyone got the ball to zip around after pitching but the openers were watchful as they went about their business. Nafees looked as good as he did in the first innings, and in fact he was the one who hit the boundaries, taking four of them before the day ended with the lead past 150 and all ten wickets in hand.

End of Day 3 – Bangladesh 35/0, Nafees 20, Southee 0-6

Daryl Tuffey speaks to an interviewer after play ends. His partnership with James Franklin is the topic of conversation. He says that batting is something that all bowlers really enjoy and today the team needed him to get stuck in there. He wanted to carry on, but he was out at a vital time. The lead was not too important to him, as the bowlers had the pitch to help them out.

 

[Gaurav_7]

Loving this from Bangladesh. Nafees off to a start again this innings and would love to make 2 in a match. It's Tigers now all the way!

 

[6ry4nj]

Whoa! Tuffey needs to move up the order! The Kiwis should move Raval or Kitchen down to 8!

 

[qpeedore]

Pitch report ? Day 4

It is surprising that the spinners have not been able to really get among the wickets too much in this match, as it continues to be great for them. That is not to say that the seamers have it too bad either. In fact, the bounce may just be a little erratic today in addition to offering some seam movement throughout. It will be interesting to see if the medium pacers of New Zealand can make an impact with their cutters and slower balls.

Shakib talks to the cameras today. He says that the pitch is great for spin bowling but the batsmen were reading the spin well and playing the ball with soft hands. But Bangladesh had a good lead and if they could give New Zealand anything over 350 to chase on the last day it should be a great match.

Play ? Day 4

Bangladesh started just as they had ended the day before, by carefully watching the ball onto the bat and playing only at the balls that they had to play at. A few overs into the day, Arnel trapped Tamim in the crease but the ball had just hit him outside the off stump and the umpire said not out. Three balls later he had Nafees playing at a wide one that flew right through the vacant gully region. Arnel angrily motioned to his captain about plugging the gap for the next over.

That would be unnecessary, though. Southee had Nafees playing and missing at one that came back in quite a lot and the appeal went up from all the fielders. The umpire thought for a moment before sending the batsman on his way. Replays confirmed that the ball had hit the batsman outside the off stump but Bangladesh had lost their first wicket for an even 50.

The bowlers were definitely getting assistance from the pitch and the ball was moving all over the place. The batsmen took it easy and the runs came mostly in singles. Mahmadullah had just started to look comfortable with the movement and had played a couple of good shots when he tried to hit one past third man but the ball peeled away off of a thick outside edge and he was easily caught by the fielder for 21.

Mahmadullah almost guided it into the hands of third man

Saleh was careful as he played his first ball but he was solid in defense and the Bangladeshis lost no further wickets as the lunch break came. Bangladesh went in with the score 103 for 2 and the lead at 222.

After lunch Tamim wasted no time in getting to a well-played fifty, hitting one over the infield that bounced just once before going over the boundary. He continued in this aggressive mode, taking Southee for two more fours in the next over. No bowler was spared from his wrath but he again could not carry on after getting himself so well set and he was bowled by Arnel for 75.

Tamim was happy to get to 50 but was out soon afterward

At the other end, Saleh had fought his way to 8 from 45 balls before he survived a close appeal for a catch behind the wicket but the umpire made the correct call in the end. He eventually settled down and played a few good looking shots to the boundary. Hom continued to look good 22 yards away, being the only batsman to really keep his scoring rate up. The partnership grew past 50 and soon the century stand loomed.

Hom tried one shot too many just a few balls before tea, though. He shaped to hit the ball over the bowler?s head but the bat turned in his hands and came right at Southee, who adjusted in his follow through and darted across to his right to take a great catch. Hom went for 47, just three short of fifty.

Islam got himself off the mark before tea and Bangladesh were 225 for the loss of four wickets, a lead of 344.

They came back out after tea with talks of when the declaration would come, if at all. A lead of 400 was mentioned but nobody really knew anything as Saleh took his guard once more. He hit a boundary from the very first ball to get himself past the fifty mark but two balls later he hit one right to square leg and had to walk off disappointed.

Shakib came out and started playing shots right from the start. It was clear what his intentions were, and that was to get as many runs as possible in as little time as possible. Islam followed suit but he ended up playing at one that came back in too much to be bowled for 22 with the score on 273.

Nadimuddin had not been in good form recently and he showed this when he edged one past the slip cordon to get himself off the mark in a streaky manner. At least his duck was broken and he would hope that more runs would come. Unfortunately for him only one more run came before he was LBW to Arnel.

Mahmud lasted only a couple of balls before being bowled by Gillespie for a duck. Shakib, realizing that he had the tail with him, tried to get things moving but he could only hit a ball from tuffey right into McCullum?s gloves. Haque hit a four to take the lead past 400 but the declaration did not come immediately. It did not matter as the next ball he was bowled by that man Gillespie once again.

End of Bangladesh innings - 284/10, Iqbal 75, Southee 3-75

2nd Test Match - 8 Dec 2012
**********************************************

Bangladesh - 2nd Innings
----------------------------------------------
T Iqbal         b Arnel                   75
S Nafees        lbw b Southee             25
M Mahmudullah   c Southee b Gillespie     21
R Saleh         c & b Arnel               51
S Hom           c & b Southee             47
N Islam         b Southee                 22
S Al Hasan      c McCullum b Tuffey       26
N Nadimuddin    lbw b Arnel               2
D Mahmud        b Gillespie               0
R Haque         b Gillespie               5
M Sharif        not out                   0
----------------------------------------------
Extras: (nb4,w2,lb4)                      10
TOTAL: (all out, 88.5 overs)              284

**********************************************

                O       M       R       W
----------------------------------------------
T Southee       23      3       75      3
B Arnel         27      3       90      3
M Gillespie     20.5    4       83      3
D Tuffey        15      3       25      1
S Wells         3       1       7       0
----------------------------------------------
Fall of Wickets:
1-50  2-87  3-137  4-223  5-229  
6-273  7-276  8-277  9-279  10-284

**********************************************

New Zealand needed 404 to win and all of Day 5 as well as about an hour left in Day 4 in which to get it. It was not impossible but they would have to bat out of the skins to get it on a pitch that offered something for even the worst of the bowlers.

Sharif was not a bad bowler by any means and he was the man to take the first wicket, getting McCullum with one that left him and travelled off the edge to first slip. He went for only 1 and the score was 6 for 1.

Jesse Ryder had been in good form but Bangladesh attacked him right from the start, looking for his wicket as cheaply as possible. The slip cordon was crowded and the close fielders were all looking ready to intercept anything that came their way. But Ryder did not seem to be concerned about them and he went about blocking out the rest of the over before getting on strike in the next over and getting himself off the mark with a powerful cut shot for four behind point.

Sharif was not to be outdone by any batsman, however. He had Ryder bowled behind his legs to one that the batsman must have thought would pass the leg stump from over the wicket. Bad idea on a pitch that was getting more and more movement as time wore on but he had to go for 5 and with the score now 12 for 2.

Some were surprised when Taylor strode out to the middle. They had expected a night watchman to come out instead. They questioned that decision and wondered if New Zealand would come to regret it.

Taylor nonchalantly got himself off the mark with nothing more than a simple dab into the off side and a quick single. That brought Raval onto strike once more. Sharif was in the middle of an excellent spell of dominant bowling, however. He had Raval caught at second slip as the batsman followed one that went away from him from over the wicket. 13 for 3 and 6 overs scheduled to go in the day.

Sharif ripped through New Zealand's top order

Kitchen and Taylor managed to get the ball away to the boundary a few times before those 6 overs were completed but New Zealand still finished the day in trouble with 3 wickets down cheaply.

End of Day 4 ? New Zealand 36/3, Taylor 13*, Sharif 3-15

Some more analysis today as the commentary team discussed just how hard batting was, taking highlights from some of the better balls and how the batsmen decided to play it. There was a lot to go through and a lot of talking points were discussed.

 

[Aislabie]

Excellent read, well done.