Bangladesh suffer defeat against NZ in rain-hit ODI opener
|| CF DESK ||
Bangladesh failed to chase a tough 245 runs (D/L method) from 30 overs against New Zealand in the first ODI at University Oval, Dunedin on Sunday as the Kiwis won the rain-hit game by 44 runs.
The match faced an initial rain delay of nearly two hours after the toss, resulting in a reduction to 40 overs per side. Subsequently, a second interruption led to a further reduction, ultimately making it a 30-overs-per-side contest.
Will Young delivered an outstanding performance, crafting a remarkable 105-run innings off 84 balls, featuring 14 fours and four sixes, leading the Blackcaps to 239 for seven.
His standout partnership with captain Tom Latham, who contributed a 92-run innings from 77 balls with three sixes and seven fours, amounted to a substantial 171-run third-wicket stand.
After winning the toss, Shoriful Islam won the first over battle against the New Zealand openers after Young started with a four off the left-arm pacer's first ball but then Shoriful struck twice in the opening over.
After hitting the four, Young played the next ball to the third man and took a single, and then in-form batter Rachin Ravindra returned for naught with a great delivery by Shoriful.
The lefty pitched in line with the off stump on a good length and the ball moved away slightly to find the edge to the keeper.
One ball later, Henry Nicholls found the edge too and was grabbed by Anamul Haque at second slip for zero.
Then Young and Latham ran the show before Mark Chapman hit two sixes and a four in an 11-ball 20-run cameo before being run out.
In addition to Shoriful's double wicket haul, Mehedi Hasan Miraz grabbed one of Latham’s wicket.
The hosts attempted to score quickly in the latter part of the innings, resulting in a collective of four runouts.
Bangladesh have lost an early wicket chasing the revised target as Soumya Sarkar failed again and got out for a duck in the first over, nicking off a delivery from Adam Milne to Tom Latham in slip.
The Tigers then tried to build a partnership, reaching 44-1 after six overs. However, the momentum shifted in the seventh over when Ish Sodhi delivered a crucial blow by rattling the stumps of captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, who had scored 15 runs.
Anamul Haque Bijoy, who came out to open, fell seven runs short of a half-century after he was dropped by wicket-keeper Tom Blundell when he was on nine.
Bijoy tried to pull a short delivery against debutant pacer Josh Clarkson but ended up top-edging the ball and being caught by the bowler on 43.
Litton Das (22) became Clarkson’s second victim, while experienced Mushfiqur Rahim tried to play a reverse sweep against Rachin but ended up in wicket-keeper Blundell’s gloves for four.
After a commanding 56 runs off 38 partnership between Towhid Hridoy and Afif Hossain, Sodhi came back to attack and picked up Hridoy for 33 runs and broke the partnership in 23rd over.
In the very next over, Afif fell to Young at short mid-wicket for the easiest of catches off Jacob Duffy’s round-the-wicket delivery, which ended Bangladesh’s last hope of winning the match.
Young in the end, produced one of the all-time great catches in ODI cricket at the boundary line as Shoriful came down the track with intent and whacks it a mile up but Young grabbed a one-handed blinder to give the cherry on top of his majestic day.
