Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan said that he needed his batters to be more consistent after they lost the first Test to India by 188 runs while chasing 513 runs at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chattogram on December 18, 2022.
Chasing a huge total, Najmul Hossain Shanto (67) and debutant Zakir Hasan (100) had a 124-run opening partnership. But after them, wickets fell in heap, and despite captain Shakib’s brilliant 84, they were all out for 324 in their second innings of the match.
After the match, Shakib Al Hasan said that poor batting in the first innings, where Bangladesh was bowled out for 150, and then Ebadot Hossain not bowling in India’s second innings due to injuries, led to the home side suffering a huge defeat.
“It was a good wicket to bat on, but we didn’t bat well (in the first innings). We played Test match after 5-6 months, but that shouldn’t be an excuse for how we performed. Lot of credit to India for how they played in the game. They bowled in partnerships and created pressure," said Shakib in the post-match presentation ceremony.
Zakir Hasan was the star for Bangladesh with the bat, scoring a century on his Test debut, becoming the fourth Bangladeshi batter to achieve this feat.
“Zakir has been scoring lots of runs in domestic cricket. He was selected on the basis of it and he did really well in the Test match. Hopefully, many more hundreds to come.
You can’t bowl well in one inning and bad in the other one. Similarly can’t bat well in one inning and not in the other one. We have to play good cricket for all five days. We have to play four good innings to be able to get a result, especially against India," added Shakib.
The second and final Test will begin in Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium from December 22 onwards.
(IANS inputs)
