Bangladesh pulled off a stunning victory in the first Test in Mirpur against Australia. As expected, a rank turner was presented at the Shere Bangla National Stadium and the visitors succumbed to the quality spinners of Bangladesh. Australia’s skipper Steve Smith blamed the lack of application by the batsmen in the first innings for the humiliating defeat.
“It was a great Test match. Credit to Bangladesh the way they played in the first innings. We fought back after the Tamim-Shakib partnership.” Said Steve Smith.
“We let ourselves down in the first innings. I thought it was pretty difficult to bat in the second innings. The tail helped the batters around – no excuses for us. The wicket spun from the first day, as I said we let ourselves down with the bat in the first innings,” he added.
“Warner has worked very hard, he played particularly well to score a hundred. It is one of those wickets where you are never really in. We were not able to stick to our game plan as long as we could in the first innings,” said the Australian skipper.
“We’re looking forward to the second game in Chittagong,” he concluded.
Mushfique elated with Shakib’s brilliance
On the contrary, the mood in the opposition camp was completely different. The Bangladeshi players cherished their first ever Test victory over the mighty Aussies. The skipper Mushfiqur Rahim poured his praises on Shakib Al Hasan, the chief contributor who bagged 10 wickets in the match and also a half-century in the first innings.
“It’s a great feeling beating Australia, especially Shakib and Tamim (Iqbal, who scored 71 and 78) were outstanding,” Mushfiqur said.
“The performance has been consistent. Our spinners – Taijul [Islam] and Shakib – were brilliant. There is a lot of room for improvement. With 150 runs [on the board] and eight wickets to take, the boys showed character. Hopefully, in the next Test, we will come harder and seal the series.” Mushfiqur stated.