Bangladesh fast bowling coach Ottis Gibson felt that his bowlers were brilliant with the new ball on day one of the first Test against New Zealand. He added that he was proud of the performances put in by the bowlers all day despite not having much luck.
Bangladesh's bowlers began the day well as they found early swing and some seam movement to trouble the New Zealand batters. Shoriful Islam had the first breakthrough, having Tom Latham caught behind with Liton Das taking a brilliant catch behind the stumps. Though Islam and Taskin Ahmed troubled Devon Conway and Will Young, they weren't able to stop the duo from having a 138-run partnership. By the end of the day, Bangladesh picked up four more wickets, including that of Young and Conway, to reduce New Zealand's marginal advantage.
"I think the fast bowlers bowled well in difficult conditions. They toiled really hard. It is hot today. I thought we were brilliant with the new ball. We pitched the ball up, swung it, and beat the bat on numerous occasions. We could have had a few more wickets. We are playing against the best team in the world. There was a close lbw shout against Devon Conway. On another day, it is given out. Those are the small margins in international cricket. I am quite proud of the way the boys battled and kept going all day," said Gibson in the virtual press conference after the day's play.
Asked about what changed in Bangladesh's bowling attack, Gibson attributed it to bowling fuller lengths, which is the complete opposite of what they bowl in home conditions. "We have been working on swinging the ball a lot. I think you will see everyone swung the ball at some point today. We tend to bowl back of length in Bangladesh because we don't get much swing there. Here, we pitched the ball up quite a lot fuller. We have been working hard since getting off the plane in Christchurch."
The 52-year-old felt Ahmed, who didn't get a wicket despite setting the pressure in the start, could get some wickets against his name on day two. "That's Test cricket. That's what I tell him. You will not get wickets every day. But tomorrow, there's still five wickets to get. Maybe he can get three or four wickets, after getting himself freshened up. He bowled very well today."
Gibson signed off by saying that the honours on day one are equally shared between the two teams. "It's even-stevens, I feel. We don't see that much grass so the grass is a factor. All the fast bowlers bowled well in difficult conditions, alien conditions to them, and Ebadot also bowled well."
Source : IANS