Mahmudullah emphasizes on good start to dictate Wellington Test

Bangladesh stand-in captain Mahmudullah Riyad stressed upon the requirements of doing better in the first innings in a bid to dictate the course of the game in the second Test, starting on Friday at Basin Reserve in Wellington, reports BSS.

Bangladesh’s first innings debacle was key in their crushing innings and 52 runs margin defeat in the first Test in Hamilton, despite their good show with batting in the second innings. The visitors were bowled out for 234 in the first innings and could not make it up despite compiling 429 in the second innings.

”I think last time the wicket was greenish early on and it will be difficult for the batsmen on the first day because there will be some movement and swing,” Mahmudullah said on Thursday in Wellington.

“But what I feel is that day by day it will be batting friendly so the opening day is very important.”

Mahmudullah in fact urged his teammates to learn from the mistakes that they did in the first innings of the opening Test.

”In Test cricket first innings is always very important because it helps you to have a good build up for the remaining part of the game,” he said.

“Whether you are batting or bowling in first innings, you have to do well because it will dictate a lot as far as getting hold of the match is concerned. So in that context first innings is very important and what we want is that if we bat first we need to build a good partnership and post a good total in the first innings while if we bowl, we need to do well here too,” he said.

When the batting debacle in the first innings got most attention, Bangladesh’s bowlers below par bowling remained a headache also. The inexperienced pace attack, combined with rookie Ebadat Hossain, Abu Jayed Rahi and Khaled Ahmed couldn’t show anything impressive and took just a solitary wicket after three bowled 87 overs in combined.

Their toothless bowling was the reason that New Zealand could rack up their highest ever total in their history, with 715-6 (dec).

Mahmdullah however was reluctant to give up hopes on them and said it will be too early to write them off ”The pace bowling attack is pretty inexperienced and it will be injustice if I expect a lot from them straight away,” he revealed.

“Certainly they are good bowlers but we need to give them time to be groomed up proper way. They are definitely going to be better for Bangladesh and they will perform better as the time progresses,” he hoped.

“They have that ambition and that was pleasing for me. I think they were pretty aggressive and they bowled a lot of over, they tried several things like bowling short balls and away from the batsmen or the length balls but they needed to be more consistent as that would have been better,” he said.

Bangladesh can draw inspiration from the fact that pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman is all set to return for them in Wellington Test but the team management is yet to decide who would make his way in the fold.

”Mustafizur will come back but we are yet to decide who will be dropped in favour of him.”