WW0W! Mustafiz
Young Bangladesh pace sensation Mustafizur Rahman was unlucky to miss out on his third hat-trick opportunity since his international bow a few months ago. The left-arm paceman made his mark on his ODI debut, picking up a record five wickets and nearly registering a hat-trick. In his second ODI, he scalped six wickets and again missed out on a hat-trick – both against India last month. His heroics earned him a coveted spot in the Bangladesh Test squad and he could have created another record if he did not miss out on his hat-trick opportunity yesterday.
The 19-year old pacer was introduced to the attack in the second over after tea and he ended up performing wonders. He bagged his first Test wicket when he removed Hashim Amla off the first ball of the over. Off the second delivery, he removed JP Duminy for a duck, opening the doors to a hat-trick opportunity on Test debut.
A length-ball yorker defended by new batsman Quinton de Kock denied him the milestone, only for the wicket-keeper to see his off-stump cartwheeling off the very next ball to make it three wickets in four balls. Mustafiz ended up taking four scalps for 37 runs in 17.4 overs.
The breakthrough
Opener Stiaan van Zyl’s departure presented Bangladesh with an early wicket, only to see a partnership develop between Dean Elgar and Faf du Plessis. The South African duo slowed the game down, adding only 78 runs in 33.1 overs for the second wicket. Bangladesh needed a breakthrough but had to wait for the most parts of the second session. Around 10 overs before tea, Taijul Islam dismissed Elgar to break the frustrating partnership. Shakib al Hasan was introduced for the first time after lunch in the 48th over, and he was spot on, trapping Du Plessis in front.
Liton’s first
Mushfiqur Rahim’s fitness denied him from wicket-keeping duty. This opened the opportunity for Liton Kumar, who made his debut for Bangladesh in the previous Test, against India last month. However, he had to wait until yesterday to glove his first catch behind the stumps in Test cricket. The 20-year old caught South Africa opener Van Zyl behind the stumps off Mahmudullah to open his account. Liton grabbed two more catches in the innings, that of Elger and Amla.
Soumya sees ‘the other side’
Soumya Sarkar, who opened the batting and bagged the man of the series in the three-ODI series with 205 runs, not in the playing XI in the first Test came as a big surprise, although it could be understood that the team combination did not aid his prospects. The return of all-rounder Mahmudullah to the national fold forced the team management to choose between Soumya and Liton Kumar Das. With Bangladesh Test skipper and wicket-keeper Mushfiqur Rahim not hundred percent fit to carry the duty behind the stumps, Liton was an easy pick. Since his ODI debut against Zimbabwe last year, Soumya represented Bangladesh in all 15 ODIs and three Tests played this year, until yesterday.
Strengthened combo
Bangladesh in its last three Tests – two against Pakistan and one versus India – had reiterated of playing aggressive cricket but the decision of playing eight batsmen in all three matches only reflected their defensive mentality and a lack of confidence in its key batters. The combination for the first Test not only satisfied the critics but also proved fruitful on day one. Five specialist bowlers including all-rounder Shakib al Hasan saw the home side restrict South Africa for just 248 in the first innings.