Bangladesh Secures Historic Five-Wicket Victory Over New Zealand
In a historic turn of events, Bangladesh claimed a remarkable five-wicket triumph against New Zealand on Wednesday, as their seamers dominated in the first game of the three-match Twenty20 series held in Napier. This victory marked Bangladesh’s inaugural Twenty20 win on New Zealand soil, coming just four days after their first-ever away one-day international win over the Black Caps in Napier.
New Zealand, opting to bat first at the request of Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, faced early setbacks, losing three wickets before reaching a total of 134 for nine in their allotted 20 overs. The Black Caps’ bowlers initially raised hopes for the home crowd by taking early wickets, including those of Bangladesh opener Rony Talukdar and Shanto.
The veteran Litton Das, in partnership with Soumya Sarkar and later Towhid Hridoy, guided Bangladesh to 96-4 after 13 overs. The visitors encountered a shaky phase at 97-5 with quick successions of wickets, including Afif Hossain’s dismissal for just one run in six balls. Das, finishing unbeaten on 42, faced challenges, surviving two close calls, including an lbw decision overturned on review.
Ish Sodhi caught Das at the boundary, but his foot touching the boundary rope resulted in conceding six runs. Mahedi Hasan, scoring 19 not out, eventually hit the winning runs in a 40-run partnership with Das, securing the victory with eight balls to spare.
The second and third Twenty20 Internationals are scheduled to take place at Mount Maunganui on Friday and Sunday, respectively. Despite being ranked ninth in Twenty20 international cricket, Bangladesh surpassed expectations by defeating the third-ranked New Zealand team.
Building on their success in the third one-day international where they dismissed New Zealand for 98, albeit losing the series 2-1, the Bangladesh bowlers continued their impressive form. Hasan claimed an early wicket by bowling Tim Seifert in the opening over, while Shoriful Islam stood out with figures of 3-26, including consecutive dismissals of Finn Allen and Glenn Phillips.
Daryl Mitchell contributed with consecutive fours before being dismissed for 14, leaving New Zealand at 20-4. Mark Chapman added 19 runs before being caught at 50-5. Captain Mitchell Santner and James Neesham put on a partnership of 41, but Sarkar’s second catch dismissed Santner, who had also caught Allen in the slips.
Neesham fell just two runs short of his half-century, getting caught at deep cover point, and Southee was caught on eight. Adam Milne hit a towering six off the final ball, finishing on 16 not out, but Bangladesh’s batters steadily chipped away at New Zealand’s total, securing a historic victory.