Email Us Forum Mail Article Print Article

Bangladesh v England Day 2

Friday, October 31 2003

England started Day 2 with Rikki Clarke and Nasser Hussain at the crease with 237 on the board and four down, their partnership which had stabilised England's rocky middle order collapse unbroken on 103. Nasser Hussain joined Clarke in the fifties as the visitors sought to press on, but the splendid Mushrafe Mortaza had other ideas.

Rikki Clarke had added just a couple to his overnight 53 when he attempted to drive the Bangladeshi paceman off the back foot. The resultant edge looked to be falling short of slip but Hannan Sarkar tumbled forward to snaffle a fine catch an inch off the ground to leave England on 250-5.

Chris Read joined Hussain in the middle and for a while the scoring rate accelerated, thanks largely to Read, striving to fit into the enormous shoes left following the retirement of Alec Stewart. His first ball from Mortaza was expertly cracked backward of point to the boundary, then two blistering drives off Khaled Mahmud were followed by a beautifully-timed loft over long-on from a half-volley by Enamul Haque jr, as skipper Khaled Mahmud strived to find the magic touch again.

England safely hoisted the 300 and their intention to keep pressing on was highlighted by Hussain attempting an outrageous reverse sweep off Enamul Haque jr in the over before the interval. Lunch was taken with the visitors on 313-5 and seemingly set for a testing total.

Once more, England went back into their shell - and this time, they paid for it. Read (37) padded up to a ball from Enamul Haque jr. which pitched a foot outside leg stump, the ball glanced off the top of his pad on to his gloves - straight to the waiting hands of Rajin Saleh at short leg. It was an elementary mistake and all so unnecessary.

Without addition to the lunch score, Hussain too departed, wafting at a ball from Mortaza outside off stump, edging the ball to the waiting gauntlets of Khaled Mashud. Hussain's scratchy but steadfast rearguard action had amassed 76 runs in a fraction under 6 hours - not pretty but it had rescued England from an awkward position.

There are three things certain in life - death, taxes and an England batting collapse - and today the lower order did not disappoint. As Mortaza strived for his fifth wicket, Richard Johnson played and missed time after time. In addition, he received a couple of painful blows to the body, one flying off his shoulder fully 30 yards.

When Johnson finally got off the mark after already having survived a simple slip chance, it was via an edge through the slips for a welcome boundary, but softened up by Mortaza, he perished to Mushfiqur Rahman shortly afterwards, caught behind for 6. Debutant Martin Saggers went to Muhammad Rafique, leg before for a single, then Ashley Giles (6) departed in similar manner to Mushfiqur Rahman as England's innings subsided tamely on 326.

In the final hour of their innings, England had scored just 13 from 18 overs and lost 5 wickets in the process - grim stuff indeed in what was largely a display of ineptitude in the face of one of the weakest - although rapidly improving - attacks in international cricket.

Hannan Sarkar and Javed Omar opened the batting For Bangladesh, and it was the latter who perished in Richard Johnson's second over, playing across the line and getting a leading edge to Michael Vaughan at mid-off for just two with the total on 6.

Habibul Bashar found Johnson's bowling much more to his liking, however, smacking the ball to the fence on three occasions. When he tried the same trick to Matthew Hoggard, though, the extra nip from the Yorkshireman proved to be his undoing as the ball flew sharply to Mark Butcher at third slip for a quickfire 18.

Rikki Clarke was thrust into the attack and once more the young man did not let England down with as hostile a spell as he has bowled in his infant international career. Bangladesh had progressed on to 61 with Hannan Sarkar (28) in defiant mood until the batsman shuffled across in front and was trapped leg before wicket.

With his very next ball, albeit at the start of his next over, Clarke removed the experienced Alok Kapali for a first-ball duck, again well caught by Butcher as Bangladesh threatened to disappear from the game in the early evening sunshine.

The redoubtable Rajin Saleh was joined in the middle by Mushfiqur Rahman who successfully negotiated the hat-trick delivery, and with the wan football floodlights struggling to make any impression on the encroaching shadows, the pair survived a tricky final half an hour to close on 93-4, just 34 runs shy of their first target, the follow-on total.

There was one late scare for England. Marcus Trescothick failed to grasp what appeared to be a simple chance by Mushfiqur Rahman off the bowling of Matthew Hoggard and in the process injured his hand. He left the field immediately and was rushed to hospital for an X-ray.

Results of the X-ray indicate that Trescothick has suffered 'strained ligaments' and although he is unlikely to take much further part in the current match, he should be fit for the one-day internationals and the tour of Sri Lanka.

Close of play summary

Bangladesh 93-4 (Rajin Saleh 24*, Mushfiqur Rahman 16*, Clarke 2-7)
trail
England 326 (Hussain 76, Trescothick 60, Clarke 55, Vaughan 54, Mortaza 4-60)
by 233 runs with 6 first innings wickets standing.


Day 1 summary

Bangladesh won the toss and inserted England in what could be perceived as an early attempt to ensure that the game would at least go the distance. Whilst the wicket was dry and appeared to be bone-hard, the outfield was lush and green following heavy rain the day before.

England's openers Michael Vaughan and Marcus Trescothick progressed at a fair clip, seemingly in total command during the morning session, adding a creditable 53 runs in the final hour before the interval.

It seemed to be plain sailing as the pair took their partnership on to 126 with Trescothick smashing Enamul Haque jr. all over the park before a familiar indiscretion outside off stump resulted in the Somerset man holing out to Mushfiqur Rahman at backward point off the bowling of Bangladeshi captain Khaled Mahmud for a fine 60.

Mark Butcher entered the fray and lost little time in heading back to the pavilion, playing down the wrong line from a ball from Mohammad Rafique to be bowled for just 6.

Worse was to come when Michael Vaughan played loosely at a Mushrafe Mortaza delivery outside off stump, edging through to Khaled Mashud for 54, then when Graham Thorpe chopped on from the same bowler two balls later for an ignominious duck, England were 134-4 having lost four wickets in as many overs.

The next three hours were far from pretty. Nasser Hussain was joined in the middle by young Surrey all-rounder Rikki Clarke and the pair set about staging a rescue act in the face of some excellent seam and spin bowling on a largely unhelpful surface. Hussain in particular looked very much out of touch, struggling on occasion to get the ball off the square, but slowly, very slowly, they dragged England back into a position of ascendancy.

The (marginally) more aggressive Clarke was particularly punishing on anything short or leg side, and he progressed to a maiden test half-century just before stumps. At close of play, England had negotiated a particularly sticky situation and come out on 237-4.

Posted by Eddie