The Daily Star
Opener Tanzid Hasan Tamim struck his sixth ODI half-century to keep Bangladesh firmly on course in their chase of New Zealand’s 199 in the second ODI of the three-match series at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Monday.
With the Tigers needing a win to stay alive in the series after losing the series opener, the innings got off to a shaky start. Saif Hassan fell for eight in the first over, and Soumya Sarkar followed in the fourth over for the same score, leaving Bangladesh at 21-2.
Tanzid then led the recovery alongside Najmul Hossain Shanto, with the pair adding an unbroken 78-run stand to take Bangladesh to 99-2 after 16 overs.
Tanzid was in fluent touch, bringing up his fifty off just 33 balls and remaining unbeaten on 59 off 44 deliveries, including eight fours and three sixes. Shanto provided steady support at the other end, unbeaten on 21 off 35 balls.
Rana’s fifer helps Bangladesh bowl out NZ for 198
Pacer Nahid Rana starred with the ball, picking up a five-wicket haul to help Bangladesh bowl New Zealand out for 198 in 48.4 overs in the second match of the three-match ODI series at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur today.
After coming into the attack, Rana troubled the visitors with his raw pace and aggression, claiming his second five-wicket haul in just 10 ODIs. The right-arm quick finished with impressive figures of five for 32 in his 10 overs, including a maiden. Rana’s previous five-wicket haul came against Pakistan in March, just four matches before today’s outing — underlining his rapid rise as a key figure in Bangladesh’s pace attack.
After New Zealand opted to bat first for the second consecutive match in the series, Rana struck with the very first ball he bowled to set the tone. He trapped Henry Nicholls in front for 13, removing the highest scorer from the opening ODI and giving the hosts an early breakthrough.
The right-arm pacer continued his fiery start by dismissing Will Young for just two in his next over. Young edged a delivery towards backward point, where Soumya Sarkar completed a simple catch, leaving the visitors under pressure early on.
Soumya, who came into the side in place of Afif Hossain, further contributed by removing New Zealand captain Tom Latham for 14, reducing the tourists to 52 for three in the 18th over.
Opener Nick Kelly then tried to rebuild the innings, stitching together two important partnerships. He added 56 runs with Muhammad Abbas (19) and followed it up with a 37-run stand alongside Dean Foxcroft (15). Kelly also brought up his maiden ODI half-century and looked set for a bigger score.
However, Rana returned to break the resistance, dismissing both Abbas and Kelly, who top-scored with 83 off 102 balls, striking 14 boundaries. He then capped off his spell by rattling the stumps of Jayden Lennox for a duck in his final over to complete his five-wicket haul.
With this performance, Rana became only the third Bangladeshi pacer after Mustafizur Rahman (five) and Taskin Ahmed (two) to claim multiple five-wicket hauls in ODIs.
Among the supporting bowlers, Shoriful Islam was once again impressive, finishing with two for 32. Taskin, Soumya, and Rishad Hossain chipped in with one wicket each as Bangladesh maintained control throughout the innings.
Nahid’s early strikes put Black Caps on back foot
Pacer Nahid Rana made an immediate impact with the new ball, striking twice early to leave New Zealand in trouble during the second ODI of the three-match series at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium today.
Nahid set the tone from the very first delivery of the innings, trapping Henry Nicholls lbw. Nicholls, who was the highest scorer across both sides in the series opener, departed for 13 off 26 balls, giving Bangladesh an early breakthrough.
The right-arm pacer struck again in his very next over, removing Will Young for just two. Young edged a delivery towards backward point, where Soumya Sarkar completed a comfortable catch, further denting the Black Caps’ top order.
Following the early setbacks, captain Tom Latham and Nick Kelly attempted to stabilise the innings with a cautious approach. The duo focused on rebuilding, guiding New Zealand to 46 for two after 15 overs, with Latham on 11 and Kelly unbeaten on 15.
Earlier, Latham won the toss for the second consecutive match and opted to bat first, hoping to replicate their success from the opening ODI.
Litton marks 100th ODI as New Zealand bat first again in Mirpur
New Zealand captain Tom Latham won the toss for the second time in a row and chose to bat first against Bangladesh in the second ODI of the three-match series at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur today.
Bangladesh made one change from the first match, bringing in Soumya Sarkar for Afif Hossain. New Zealand kept the same playing XI after their 26-run win in the opening game.
The spotlight is on wicketkeeper Litton Das, who is set to play his 100th ODI, becoming only the 14th Bangladeshi cricketer to reach the milestone.
After six months, Soumya is set to play for Bangladesh again. He last played an ODI against the West Indies in October, and after that, when Bangladesh played against Pakistan, Soumya did not get a chance to feature.
Bangladesh XI: Saif Hassan, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Litton Das (wk), Towhid Hridoy, Soumya Sarkar, Mehidy Hasan Miraz (c), Rishad Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana, Taskin Ahmed.
New Zealand XI: Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Nick Kelly, Dean Foxcroft, Tom Latham (c & wk), Muhammad Abbas, Josh Clarkson, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Will O’Rourke, Jayden Lennox.
Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/cricket/news/litton-marks-100th-odi-new-zealand-bat-first-again-mirpur-4155856
