'Bangladesh Have Had The Upper Hand On New Zealand For A Massive Part Of This Test'

Cricket Image for 'Bangladesh Have Had The Upper Hand On New Zealand For A Massive Part Of This Test (Image Source: AFP)

NZ v BAN: The first international test match of 2022 may be headed towards a historic finish as the play ended on Day 4. Bangladesh started the day continuing their impressive first inning batting performance that saw them extend their lead to 130 runs. New Zealand’s second innings batting performance has been shaky with a 17-run lead to end the day, but with only 5 more wickets in hand.

Bangladesh hasn’t won an international cricket match in New Zealand in 33 outings prior to this. Day 5 may see them pull off a historic win in their team’s history. 

Bangladeshi wicketkeeper, Liton Das had this to say about the teams impressive performance. 

"All the players bowled well. They played with concentration and kept to the match strategy that we had outlined at the beginning of play. Ebadat was outstanding today and his breakthrough boosted the team a lot. We are not over-excited, we still have to take 5 wickets, and we want to ensure that we give away as few runs as we can. "

Blackcaps batting coach Luke Ronchi candidly spoke about the Day 4 performance of the team and admitted that Bangladesh had the upper hand on New Zealand.

"We had to get the wickets to get ourselves back in the game. In the batting, Will Young and Ross Taylor went along nicely in a good partnership that helped with erasing the deficit. But just as we past it, we lost crucial wickets at a poor time. All in all, Bangladesh have had the upper hand on us for quite a massive part of this test."

New Zealand will start Day 5 on the bat with veteran Ross Taylor and Rachin Ravindra continuing their partnership. Bangladesh will look to stop the Kiwis from building a formidable lead with their last five wickets and finish the test off in their second innings. A lot is at stake for both teams in the World Test Championship 2021-23 rankings as well, with both teams yet to rack up any points on the board.