On the first day of the maiden test match at Sylhet International Cricket Stadium on Tuesday, Bangladesh lost two of their most experienced hitters, Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Mominul Haque, late in the afternoon session, which saw the momentum shift in favour of New Zealand.
Ten minutes prior to the tea break, it appeared that Bangladesh was winning the session and that the two would continue to be unblemished till the break, but that was not to be. To maintain Bangladesh at 185/4 at Tea, New Zealand mounted a valiant counterattack, taking two quick wickets.
Both batters departed just minutes before the break. Mominul was the first to go getting caught behind while trying to cut off Glenn Phillips. The southpaw bagged 37 runs before departing.
Joy departed in the next over, making a solid 86 but falling short of his second hundred in a Test match. In his innings, he struck 11 boundaries.
While Ish Sodhi and Ajaz Patel each claimed one wicket, Phillips claimed two for New Zealand.
A little bit of green had appeared on the pitch earlier, and Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson were able to move the ball a little bit off the seam and into the air thanks to their early innings. Play on the pitch appears to have fair carry and a reasonable bit of spin, at least through the first hour of play.
As early as the seventh over, Southee brought in left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel, who immediately began to trouble left-hander Zakir Hasan. Patel finally got his comeuppance in the 13th over when he broke the opening stand of 39 between Joy and Zakir (12 off 41).
At number three, Shanto entered the fight with good intentions. He used his strength and advantageous matchup to defeat Patel. In his rapid-fire knock, the southpaw hit three sixes and a four off Patel.
This prompted Southee to insert off-spinner Glenn Phillips, and the move paid off instantly as Shanto top-edged the ball to Kane Williamson, positioned just to deep mid-on on the left. 35 off 37 was a 37 for him.
Joy appeared to be in charge most of the time during the session. He looked very compact against pace and spin, and he played leg-spinner Ish Sodhi particularly well.
