Twitter Reactions: Trent Boult’s four-fer hands Bangladesh crushing defeat in series opener

Bangladesh, without Shakib Al Hasan, couldn’t put up much of a fight in the opening ODI against New Zealand. At the University Oval in Dunedin, the Black Caps raced to an eight-wicket victory, chasing down 132 with as many as 28.4 overs to spare. Most importantly, the hosts took a much-needed 1-0 lead in the series, leaving the Tigers in a must-win scenario for the next two games.

After putting the visitors in to bat first, Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar looked settled in a 19-run stand. But once Trent Boult picked up two wickets in the fifth over, there was no looking back for the Kiwis. Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah tried to put their heads down, but both perished in their 20s. Mohammad Mithun’s dry run of form continued as he got out after a laboured to a 27-ball nine.

Boult rips through Bangladesh

Mahedi Hasan and Taskin Ahmed added runs lower down the order, but it was only to mitigate the damage. Boult was the standout for the hosts as he picked up four wickets. James Neesham and Mitchell Santner got two wickets each even as Matt Henry got the solitary scalp of Mahmudullah. Kyle Jamieson was the only bowler, who went wicketless, but he conceded runs at a mere 3.10.

In the run-chase, New Zealand went hammer and tongs at the top, courtesy a 54-run opening wicket stand off 5.3 overs between Martin Guptill and Henry Nicholls. Bangladesh got a short breather when Taskin Ahmed removed the former for a 19-ball 38.

Devon Conway got a patient 52-ball 27 before giving his wicket away to Hasan Mahmud, who leaked runs at an economy rate of 11.30. Nicholls’ unbeaten 53-ball 49 made sure that New Zealand got past the target without much fuss.

Tom Latham, the home team’s skipper, was a happy man after the resounding victory. “Absolutely lovely. It was a game full of debutants and a few milestones. The bowling group has been together for a while. We were clinical,” Latham said after the game.

“From a bowling point of view, it was very clinical. When you win, it doesn’t matter how you win. We all know how dangerous Guptill can be when he bats like that. Another outstanding crowd here. Hoping the same at Christchurch as well,” he added.

Tamim Iqbal rues shoddy batting performance

Tamim, the Tigers’ captain, lamented the poor shot selection from their batters. “There were too many soft dismissals. We take a lot of pride in our batting which didn’t click. Hope we find out the mistakes and not repeat them next time. We had a few days of preparations.

“It is not new to us. We have been coming to NZ. We know what to expect and hoping to put up a better show. The first shot was lovely. He bowled nicely as bowling in these conditions isn’t easy,” he added.

Here’s how the netizens reacted:

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