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New Zealand vs Bangladesh 2nd Test, Day 2 preview and predictions: Hosts looking to carry momentum

New Zealand have the upper edge as we head into Day Two, while Bangladesh would be hopeful of some stringent spells from their bowlers to acquire some grip on the game

New Zealand will look to consolidate their position on Day Two © Getty Images
New Zealand will look to consolidate their position on Day Two © Getty Images

New Zealand will be content but not overly happy with the way Day One of the second Test against Bangladesh went by. Kane Williamson put Bangladesh in, and New Zealand were rewarded quickly as both stand-in captain Tamim Iqbal and Mahmudullah were dismissed quickly. But Shakib Al Hasan and Soumya Sarkar counterattacked to make sure that Bangladesh put up 289. Stumps were taken at that score. Tim Southee took 5 for 94 and Trent Boult 4 for 87 to prevent The Tigers from reaching the 300-run mark. Had New Zealand not dropped catches, Bangladesh could have been bowled out inside 200.

Both teams had opportunities to take control of the match but they finished the day with honours even, which will make Day Two extremely interesting.

Live Cricket Scorecard: Bangladesh vs New Zealand, 2nd Test Christchurch

Of course, New Zealand will seek to reach the 290- mark without losing too many wickets. They do have a strong batting line-up, and given the advantage of their home conditions they obviously hold upper hand, more so given the form of Tom Latham, Ross Taylor and Williamson have. However, Bangladesh have a formidable bowling unit. Rubel Hossain has returned to join forces with Taskin Ahmed, thus giving the attack the extra edge. Given the way Southee and Boult bowled on Day One, things will not be the easiest for the New Zealand batsmen. They will be backed by Shakib and Mehedi Hasan Miraz, both proven match-winners. Though New Zealand had Mitchell Santner, they did not deploy him. It will be interesting to see how Tamim uses Shakib and Mehedi.

Southee told ESPNCricinfo after the day’s play: “I felt all right. It’s always nice to pick up wickets. There were a couple of burgles down the leg side, which are always nice. It looks good in the score book — caught Watling bowled Southee. On other occasions you bowl probably better and haven’t got the wickets, but it’s nice to contribute and take wickets. If you can bowl a side out on day one it’s a good effort. They came out again with a positive intent and looked to put any balls that we missed away to the fence and they did that, especially in that period before lunch. I think we managed to claw the run rate back a bit towards the end so it’s a good day.”

Southee is only 2 wickets away from becoming the fifth New Zealand bowler to take 200 Test wickets. He said: “It will be nice if it comes, but you don’t set out to do too many individual milestones. They’re the sort of things you tick off along the way. The next job is to try to knock them over again. Hopefully after a little bit of rest.”

New Zealand are in the pole position as of now with the victory in the first Test and having bowled their opposition out. But they will have to carry on with same kind of performance on Day Two as well to maintain their dominance and tighten their grip on this second and final Test.

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