World T20: New Zealand look to tie up loose ends

KOLKATA: New Zealand, the first team to have booked a semifinal berth in the World T20, will be on show at the Eden Gardens on Saturday afternoon. But all the talk on the eve of the match centred around their opponents, the already eliminated Bangladesh. More specifically, the way they managed to embrace defeat against India after coming within a stroke of victory in Bengaluru.
The Bangladesh batsmen redefined 'cricketing harakiri' at the Chinnaswamy Stadium by losing three wickets in a situation where they needed to score just two runs in three balls with four wickets in hand.They not only let the Men in Blue get out of jail, the 'Tigers' lost the opportunity to stay in contention.
"It's hard to describe the (Bengaluru) defeat... I don't have an explanation," Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza said, adding that he hoped the team learns its lessons.
There's nothing at stake for Bangladesh, but Mortaza stressed that the Tigers have a lot to play for against New Zealand. "The players were in a state of shock, the fans were bitterly disappointed after the India game, but we can still play hard (vs NZ) and make sure if we get a similar opportunity, we don't repeat the mistakes and close it out."
A lot was expected from the much improved Bangladesh in this tournament. But the Tigers haven't always been spot-on with team selection and batting positions. Exciting left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman was left out of the XI in the first game against Pakistan, while all-rounder Nasir Hossain has had to sit out to accommodate an extra specialist batsman in Mithun, who has hardly had any role to play . Mahmudullah, one of the 'culprits' at Bengaluru, looks better suited to bat up the order than play the finisher's role.
New Zealand have been unbeatable thus far, thanks to some smart work by spinners Mitchell Santner (8 wickets, economy rate 5.83) and Ish Sodhi (5 wkts, economy 4.75). But the Black Caps have their own issues to address, particularly in batting. Skipper Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor are yet to come to the party, and but for Martin Guptill's power packed 80 against Pakistan in their last match, no batsman has got into the forties. So there's some life left even in a dead rubber. It gives New Zealand the chance to tie up the loose ends and Bangladesh one last shot at bringing the smiles back on their passionate fans' faces.