2023/25 World Test Championship: Blackcaps vs Bangladesh First Test Debrief
The 2023/25 World Test Championship cycle and tour of Bangladesh started with a loss, a pesky loss that could determine the overall Blackcaps WTC outcome. Blackcaps lost by 150 runs and this looks like a hefty margin, although the kiwis were in a competitive battle against the hosts until they were tasked with a significant run-chase in tricky conditions.
Batting last in Asia is a cricketing nightmare. There was a desperate need for Aotearoa grit in this Test but this would have been more useful if deployed in either bowling innings, or grinding through tough patches of their first batting effort. Grit only goes so far when chasing down 300-odd runs on the final day of a Test in Bangladesh, when the hosts have a endless supply of nifty spinners.
The absence of gritty mahi to fight for a draw was a bummer. Test draws have always served as an indicator of a team's quality and this is amplified in the WTC where points are allocated for drawn Tests. No points are on offer for a loss and the four points for a draw could be instrumental in the final standings. Throughout the first Test in Bangladesh, moments appeared where Blackcaps could have rallied to put pressure on the hosts. Ultimately, New Zealand crumbled in too many of those spots and we will learn more about this group's mana in how they respond.
Blackcaps embrace lads who have been in the mix and thus, Henry Nicholls kept his place in the 1st 11 despite a competitive selection battle with various spinners available. Glenn Phillips' selection was a funky move and while he was selected ahead of Rachin Ravindra, Blackcaps could flip Nicholls out for Ravindra.
Nicholls scored 200* in his last Test outing and this gives him a Test century in seven consecutive years. Most players would love to own that stat nugget and yet this highlights the Nicholls conundrum as he only has more than one century in six of these seven years, with Nicholls always finding a notable score when he needs it. Nicholls scored 105 runs in the first Test v South Africa in February 2022, which was followed by 15 innings with no scores over 40 before his double-hundy against Sri Lanka in March this year.
Will Young offers a top-order batting skillset and could come in for Nicholls. The best scenario though is Ravindra's inclusion which adds another spin option for Blackcaps, without weakening the batting. Ravindra could bat anywhere in the line up and despite the loss in Sylhet, Blackcaps batted deep with Tim Southee scoring runs in both innings along with Ish Sodhi offering a splash of grit in his 22 runs off 91 deliveries as the loss approached.
It's easy to highlight Nicholls' struggles, especially when he looks agitated and seems to play an aggressive stroke out of frustration. Other form wrinkles are less obvious though, such as Devon Conway who has fallen behind Daryl Mitchell as the second best batter - praise Jah for Kane Williamson. Here are Conway's yearly Test batting splits...
2021: 63.16avg
2022: 49.92avg
2023: 37.18avg
Conway had scores of 12 and 22 against Bangladesh, facing 40+ deliveries in both innings. Batting in these conditions is niggly because no matter how settled a batter is, deliveries can rip either way with variable bounce. Set batters can look like they are trying to start their innings and even then, Conway has usually made the most of such starts in his Test career. Conway's most recent Test century was in Pakistan last summer and after three centuries in his first five Tests, Conway has one century in his last 12 Tests.
Ajaz Patel took the most wickets for Blackcaps in this Test (6w @ 3.6rpo) and yet it still feels a wee bit underwhelming as the lead spinner. The 10 wickets of Mumbai magic frames how Patel is viewed and he was the main spin option for Aotearoa in Bangladesh, bowling 60.4 overs while no other bowler grabbed more than 33 overs for Blackcaps.
Patel is usually at his best bowling long spells in which he can find a groove and build pressure. In the first innings against Bangladesh, Patel was the second most expensive kiwi bowler and his 4rpo in the second innings was the most expensive for Blackcaps. As a Test performance, this isn't bad from Patel but it fits into a wider trend of Patel not quite executing his role as a consistent tweaker who can hold down an end.
Here is Patel's Test mahi by year, with economy rates increasing each year...
2019: 26.88avg/2.8rpo
2021: 20.66avg/3rpo
2022: 111.5avg/3.5rpo
2023: 38.22avg/4rpo
Patel was the most expensive Blackcaps bowler in Pakistan last summer (64avg/3.8rpo) and had a County Championship stint with Durham this winter where he took 10w @ 44avg/3.1rpo. Patel's always bowled lots of overs and dominated Plunket Shield for wickets through his marathon mahi, yet the wickets aren't quite flowing and he is getting more expensive which drives the averages up. New Zealand spinners rarely average below 30 and when adjusting for that, Patel's averages are still a minor concern.
It's important to note at this juncture that Blackcaps restricted Bangladesh to scores below 340 runs in both innings. Patel played his role in that, as did all the bowlers and if the hosts can't score 340+ runs, then it's going to be tricky for the tourists. The inclusion of Ravindra adds another bowler to the group and there could be a Kyle Jamieson for Neil Wagner tweak made, although Jamieson was solid in his return to Test cricket.
Patches of sloppiness headline this Test. Blackcaps are usually crisp in the small details and yet the bowlers drifted out of their zones, batters tried to whack their way out of trouble and Tom Blundell was far from his best behind the stumps. These pockets set the tone for Blackcaps cricket and while offering a decent performance in tricky conditions, Blackcaps didn't do the Test cricket things good enough to salvage a result. How they learn from that and what happens next will inform us about their WTC expectations.
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Peace and love.