Pacer Rubel Hossain used the early conditions to good effect but the batsmen settled and scored runs as the day progressed during the practice match between the Bangladesh cricket team players in New Zealand today.
Rubel took four wickets for 42 runs as Najmul XI restricted Tamim XI to 233/5 in 50 overs. Mohammed Mithun’s unbeaten 66 was the top-score of the innings, with the second highest coming from a local player.
Both teams featured a number of local players in the practice match held at the John Davis Oval in Queenstown.
Najmul XI reached the victory target losing only one wicket, with 19 deliveries to spare. Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mehedi Hasan Miraz retired after scoring fifties.
Miraz, at the end of the match, told media that it was a good outing for the players following team training on the previous days. He also said the spinners will have to use their variations with speed and line and length to be successful on wickets like these.
Tamim XI: 233/5 in 50 overs (Naim Sheikh 12, Soumya Sarkar 28, Mahmud Ullah 35, Shak Mahedi 38, Benji Culhane 46 not out, Md Mithun 66 not out; Rubel Hossain 4/42, Saif Uddin 1/40)
Najmul XI: 235/1 in 46.5 overs (Najmul Hossain Shanto 40 retd, Liton Kumar Das 59 retd, Mushfiqur Rahim 54 not out, Mehedi Hasan Miraz 50 retd, Saifuddin 16 not out; Mustafizur Rahman 1/21)
