Tigers end Day 1 on a positive note

Two late wickets saw Bangladesh end the opening day of their first Test on a positive note against New Zealand at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on Saturday.  

New Zealand amassed 258 for five in 87.3 overs before stumps on Day 1 with Henry Nicholls unbeaten on 32. For Bangladesh, pacer Shoriful Islam remained the pick of the bowlers, scalping two crucial wickets to finish the day with figures of two for 53 in 20 overs that included five maidens.

Bangladesh Test skipper Mominul Haque removed New Zealand's centurion Devon Conway while Ebadot Hossain picked up the wicket of Tom Blundell in the final session as the visitors somewhat swayed the momentum of the game towards them near the end of the opening day's play.

Blundell's wicket was the last action of the day as the batter got an inside edge and played it onto his stumps. He walked off after a 25-ball 11. Before that, Conway, who was almost flawless throughout the innings, fell prey to a harmless delivery by occasional bowler Mominul, who only introduced himself in the attack to give the regular bowlers some respite.

It was a length ball from Mominul that went down the leg side and Conway, who could have played it anywhere or even offered no shot, ended up getting a slight edge. And Liton Das, whose glovework has been excellent throughout the day, made no mistake grabbing it. Conway, after a well-deserved 227-ball 122, laced with 16 boundaries and a maximum, departed in an unexpected fashion. 

It was Conway who had dominated proceedings for the most part of the day's play. The left-hander began cautiously, taking 13 deliveries to get off the mark, and then picked up the pace as the surface became easier to bat on. He strung together stands of 138 and 50 runs with Will Young (52 off 135) and Ross Taylor (31 off 64) respectively. 

However, before Conway started building his ominous-looking stand with Young, Bangladesh pacers portrayed a quality showing of fast bowling in the first hour of the game. Both Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful kept beating the outside edges of the batters while maintaining a good channel that also kept the scoring rate in check. 

Shoriful even gave the Tigers an early breakthrough when he had New Zealand skipper Tom Latham caught behind, thanks to a brilliant diving catch by wicketkeeper Liton. The young left-arm pacer also removed Taylor, who is playing in his last Test series, in the final session of the day. 

Shoriful removes Taylor 

Bangladesh pacer Shoriful Islam took the prized wicket of New Zealand's Ross Taylor following tea on the opening day of the two sides' first Test at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui today.   Taylor, playing his final Test series for the Kiwis, was caught at cover by Shadman Islam after he had tried to smash Shoriful for a boundary but failed to keep the shot low. Taylor returned after a 64-ball 31, laced with five boundaries.

Shoriful, who gave Bangladesh an early breakthrough, remains the pick of the bowlers for the Tigers so far. He is the only bowler to have claimed wickets on the day as the other wicket, that of Will Young, was courtesy of a run-out. The wicket of Taylor also ended a fifty-run stand between Taylor and Devon Conway, who brought up second Test ton after tea. Conway, who picked up the pace since a steady start, smashed a total of 14 boundaries and a maximum on way to the three-figure mark. The left-hander reached the landmark off 186 deliveries by pulling a short one from Taskin Ahmed to fine-leg for a single. 

 Run-out ends century stand 

Even though a run-out ended an ominous-looking century stand between Devon Conway and Will Young, New Zealand still stay in firm control on the opening day of their first Test against Bangladesh at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui today. With Conway unbeaten on 88 and Ross Taylor four not out, New Zealand amassed 147 for the loss of two wickets in 54 overs before tea. The only thing that went for Bangladesh on the second session of the day was when Young was caught short of his crease after he had been refused by Conway a single.

Young, who was seemingly losing his patience, tried to steal a quick single after flicking a Mehedi Hasan Miraz delivery towards the mid-wicket region. Conway spotted the imminent danger and sent him back but a sharp throw and a laudable glovework by wicketkeeper Liton Das sent Young back to the pavilion, ending a 138-run stand between Conway and Young. 

Young departed after half century 

However, other than that wicket, New Zealand had everything under control. Conway, after a steady start, started to play more freely, pouncing on the short deliveries which have been coming on to the bat nicely on a pitch that seems to be getting batting-friendly as the day progresses. Smashing 13 fours and a maximum, Conway is just 12 runs away from picking up his second Test ton. Conway was joined by Ross Taylor at the crease with the crowd cheering him on as he made his way into the field for the first time since announcing his retirement.