On the second day of the first Test in Darwin on August 14, Bangladesh reached 351 for 6 at stumps, taking a lead of 153 runs, putting Australia in a difficult situation. With skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto getting 84 runs and opener Tanzid Hasan scoring his first Test century, the visitors had controlled the second day of play. After being bowled out for 198 on the opening day, Australia needed to put up a good batting display to re-enter the match.
Despite the fact that the host team is completely in the soup, Australia’s all-rounder Beau Webster has not given up on the opening Test match against Bangladesh in Darwin. The tourists are ahead of Australia by 153 runs at the close of the second day. They have a very good chance of taking a lead of 200 or more in the first innings at 351/6.
However, Australians have always been renowned for their fortitude and stoicism, never giving up. Speaking to the media following the play of the day, Webster referred to precisely that. He said, “I’m sure everybody’s still looking at it, how to win this game of cricket. Obviously, we’ve got to get these last 4 wickets as cheaply as possible, and then, yeah, probably two really good days of batting, which is going to be hard work, no doubt, but yeah, like I said, the boys in the dressing room, you know, have full faith in their calibre to do it.”
Australia’s bowling strategy on day two was influenced by the pitch conditions and Bangladesh’s batting performance. The visitors had an easier time batting because the surface had flattened significantly from day one. According to Webster, Australia had attempted a number of tactics to get past Bangladesh’s formidable batting lineup.
He further added, “Yeah, it’s Test cricket, I suppose that’s the way it is. It’s obviously a hot day out there, but the wicket looked like it had flattened out. A little bit more than it was on the morning of day one. So, yeah, like I said, they’ve batted really well. We tried a few different plans, wide, straight, spin, some bumpers, try and grab a wicket and see if we can go through it. But yeah, they batted nicely and we have to come up with some more plans tomorrow.”
Throughout the second day, Bangladesh’s batting had been based on solid partnerships. Together with Mominul Haque, Tanzid scored 102 runs for the second wicket before joining forces with Shanto to score 93 runs for the third wicket. Lower-order batsmen Batting together for almost 25 overs, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Hasan Mahmud shown tenacity by leading their team safely to stumps.
