Ross Taylor whips the ball into the leg side © Getty Images
Lunch New Zealand 198 for 3 (Taylor 103*, Nicholls 9*, Jayed 2-52) trail Bangladesh 211 by 13 runs
Coming into this game, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor had played 162 Tests between them, and Abu Jayed, Ebadot Hossain and Mustafizur Rahman a combined 17. That experience gap proved crucial in a fascinating first session on day four, as New Zealand’s third-wicket pair put on their eighth century stand in Tests and hauled their team into a position of strength on a still tricky Basin Reserve surface.
By the time Williamson chipped a return catch to Taijul Islam 20 minutes before lunch, he had added 172 with Taylor at 5.54 per over. That scoring rate was a slightly misleading figure, though, since this wasn’t entirely the tale of a dominant batting pair laying waste to poor bowling. Bangladesh’s three quicks caused plenty of discomfort in seaming, bouncy conditions, and a lot of the runs they conceded came off edges through the slip cordon, and they even created a couple of clear-cut chances. But Taylor and Williamson rode their luck, found ways to survive and score runs, and eventually took firm control of the Test match. At lunch New Zealand, who had been 8 for 2 on the third evening, were only 13 runs behind Bangladesh’s first-innings total with seven wickets in hand.
More to follow…
Karthik Krishnaswamy is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo