New Zealand would be satisfied with their effort with the bat against Bangladesh in 1st ODI. The Black Caps managed to score 247-8, Henry Nicholls played the role of senior batter quite perfectly in a young squad. Dean Foxcroft played a handy knock as well in challenging conditions.
New Zealand gets off to a cautious start in powerplay overs
New Zealand had no hesitation in batting first as the surface was dry & a bit too pacey. Bangladesh was struck with a huge blow as Mustafizur Rahman was sidelined with a cramp just before the start of the match. Taskin Ahmed & Shoriful Islam made the most of the tricky conditions as there was cloud cover as well. Henry Nichollas & Nick Kelly had to toil a lot to get runs in the starting overs of the match.
The pressure was mounting on Nick Kelly. In the 7th over, his stumps were rattled by Shoriful, who was out on 7 runs in 23 balls. Will Young then came into bat as it was quite surprising that he didn’t open the batting, given he has succeeded in sub-continent conditions in red ball & ODI cricket, & Nick Kelly is relatively inexperienced. Henry Nicholls capitalized on loose deliveries as somehow the Kiwis managed to score 38-1 in 10 overs.
Henry Nicholls & Will Young put Kiwis back on track
The duo of Nicholls & Young changed the complexion of the match. The left-hand right-hand combination annoyed Bangladeshi bowlers. Taskin Ahmed’s short ball ploy & around the wicket tactics couldn’t trouble Nicholls. It was a calm & collective risk-taking approach by the duo.
Skipper Mehidy Hasan Miraz couldn’t stop the strike rotation even when he introduced himself in attack. There was a typical ODI match batting display from those who were taking the game deep. At the end of 20 overs, New Zealand’s score was 82-1; most importantly, they had wickets in hand despite run rate not being so great.
Bangladesh claw their way back in the middle overs
Rishad Hossain got the much-needed breakthrough of Will Young (30 in 42) in the 22nd over, as he would be upset given he couldn’t convert his start. The skipper Tom Latham came into bat when the score was 97-2 in 21.1 overs. Mehidy Hasan Miraz & Rishad both of them then started operating from different ends from the 23rd over onwards.
The cracks were opening up; despite that, Latham & Nicholls were playing sweep shots as they were the last, most experienced batting pair at the crease. Nichollas had got to his half-century in 65 balls, as it was a hard-fought one. At the end of 25 overs, the visitors were 120-2 in 25 overs, and the platform was laid to get a score close to 280.
In the 27th & 28th over, both Latham & Nicholls lost their wickets. Mehidy bowled Latham (14 un 15) around the wicket as the ball kept low astonishingly, & in the 28th over, Nicholls (68 in 83 )’s reverse sweep shot got a top edge. All of a sudden, Black Caps’ score was 131-4 in 28 overs. The two inexperienced Muhammad Abbas & Dean Foxcroft had a steep challenge on their hands.
Dean Foxcroft rescues New Zealand
Foxcroft & Abbas made sure that there are no more hiccups in the innings. The surface was misbehaving & Bangladesh had a golden chance to restrict the visitors under 220. Foxcroft, though, had other ideas whose positive mindset made sure that the scoreboard was ticking away nicely. At the end of 40 overs, New Zealand’s score was 185-5.
Dean Foxcroft was not at all perturbed with a sharp turn as he took on Rishad Hossain in the 41st over. Wickets kept on tumbling from the other end, but Foxcroft’s confidence was shaken at all. In the 47th over, Foxcroft’s decision to go for 3 back-to-back boundaries failed as he lost his wicket on 59 runs in 58 balls, as he hit 8 fours. This was his first ODI match in Bangladesh. New Zealand ended on 247-8 as it was a team effort. Shoriful Islam was the pick of the bowlers, who took 2 wickets for 27 runs and bowled 2 maiden overs.
Who’s winning, Bangladesh or New Zealand
248 can be said match winning score as the surface is a bit tacky. New Zealand’s bowling line-up, though, is tyro in these conditions. All eyes will be on Jayden Lennox, who recently played the ODI series in India. Bangladesh needs to have wickets in hand & not go for glory. The likes of Litton Das & Mehidy Hasan Miraz need to avoid batting collapses if it happens. New Zealand, though are slight favorite, but anything can happen.
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