Tamim Iqbal slashed the third ball of the day over the slip
cordon for four and set the tempo of the Bangladesh innings. Under the dark sky
and on a greenish deck, he flexed his muscles to disturb the length of New
Zealand bowlers. Tamim’s confident strokeplay became contagious as Mominul
Haque joined the party and executed some exquisite strokes off his fluid
wrists.
On a sun-kissed day 2, Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim
unleashed one of the finest moments in the history of Bangladesh cricket by
stitching a record partnership for the fifth wicket as the bowling of New
Zealand was made to sweat on a hot day.
Bangladesh declared the first innings at 595 for 8, but
still failed to create pressure on the hosts. And on day 5, they left the field
dejected and disappointed as Kane Williamson and his men notched up an emphatic
win against the Tigers to add more fuel to their woes.
It’s never acceptable to lose a Test after notching up so
many runs in the first innings, but the reality is a harsh one and there were
obvious reasons which contributed to such a defeat.
Inexperienced
bowling attack
Bangladesh
took the field without Mushfiqur Rahim as he was injured and Tamim was in
charge. As a captain, Tamim was bold and his intent was to take wickets. But
his aggressive intent was undermined by some poor bowling.
The
two were too short and struggled to understand the ideal length to be bowled in
that pitch. Mehedi’s pace was his major weapon to nail the English batting
line-up last year, but at Wellington, his deliveries lacked pace and the
cutting edge as he didn’t use his shoulder enough. Of course, relying too much
on the shoulder is not good, but Mehedi needs to add guile to his game.
The
track, vastly different from the tracks in Dhaka and Chittagong, was not aiding
enough turn and bounce even on day 3. Mehedi needed to concentrate on
discipline and make the batsman play forward rather than trying to be too
adventurous.
Even
though Taskin has been one of the major reasons behind Bangladesh’s outstanding
success in the limited-overs format, in Tests, he has never seemed to be up to
the mark. Pitching the ball on a 50 or 20-over format length and dragging the
ball way too short are never ideal on wickets like Wellington.
A
pace bowler needs to understand the flow of the breeze and utilise it at its
very best by pitching the ball full enough in-and-around the off stump to gain
maximum results.
Meanwhile,
Subashis’ problems with the landing of his front foot dented his rhythm and
Tamim found the going tough on the field.
Above
all, one needs to bear in mind, this bowling attack was inexperienced. Taskin
and Subashis were making their debuts while Mehedi and Rabbi were playing their
third Test. The responsibility on Shakib was huge, but it is quite obvious that
he cannot strike gold every day and thus, the inexperience of others, left
Bangladesh struggling.
Lack of
mental strength, skill and fitness to counter the short-ball attack
One
of the major reasons behind New Zealand’s success at home has been their
ability to trigger collapses in the second innings by unleashing a ferocious
display of short-ball bowling. Neither Tim Southee nor Trent Boult are known
for their short-pitch bowling, but Neil Wagner has played a vital role in
creating unrelenting pressure on the opposition and triggering collapses.
Wagner’s
short-balls are different; he bangs the ball short by targeting the rib cage
area of a batsman at a deceptive pace with an astonishing regularity. This
tactic has helped New Zealand come back in the game many times in the past and
it was no different at Wellington.
Be
it with the wind or against the wind, Wagner did not shy from throwing cannon
balls from his disposal and intimidate the batsman.
To
counter such bowling, a batsman needs to be mentally tough and technically
solid. Mental toughness is especially important against the short-ball
attacks.
The
flurry of short-ball attacks were expected on the final day and Wagner hinted at
such a tactic at the fag end of day 4. But the Bangladesh batsmen lacked the
mental strength and physical fitness to withstand the heat of Wagner and
co .
Even
technically, the Bangladeshi batsmen were not well-equipped against the short-ball
attack.
They
are not trained to get on top of the bounce, on the back foot quickly and
behind the line of the ball against short-balls. When the initial trigger
movement is on the front foot, it’s never easy to play the short-balls well.
Had the initial trigger movement of Bangladesh batsmen been on the back foot,
it would have been easier to negotiate the short stuff.
Note: This article was published on 16/01/2017 at Sportskeeda Why Bangladesh lost the first Test at Wellington
Thank You
Faisal Caesar
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