By Jake Beleski
Neil Broom’s maiden one-day international century combined with a rare devastating bowling spell from skipper Kane Williamson has propelled the Black Caps to a series win over Bangladesh.
Broom was recalled for this three-match series following a six-year absence from the national side.
He repaid the selectors’ faith by almost single-handedly getting New Zealand to a competitive total at Saxton Oval in Nelson yesterday.
His 109 runs, including eight 4s and three 6s, came from 107 balls and it was enough to drag the Black Caps through to 251 all out from their 50 overs.
New Zealand had been asked to bat first on a slow pitch and found themselves in early trouble when Martin Guptill was removed in the first over, trapped lbw by Mashrafe Mortaza.
Tom Latham (22) and Kane Williamson (14) set about building a total, but both were out in quick succession to leave the Black Caps teetering at 47-3.
Broom and Jimmy Neesham were tasked with righting the ship, and both looked comfortable before a rush of blood sent Neesham charging down the pitch, only to be stumped on 28 by impressive wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan off the bowling of left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan.
The Black Caps’ batsmen struggled with the two-paced nature of the pitch, but Broom was the exception.
His exquisite timing allowed him to constantly find the boundary as others perished around him.
There were nervous moments as he was stranded on 99 at the non-striker’s end when the ninth wicket fell, but Trent Boult stuck around long enough to see Broom through to the special milestone.
Bangladesh looked to be cruising to a series-levelling win at 105-1 in their reply but a stunning collapse, initiated by a comical runout, ensured they never threatened New Zealand’s total.
Kane Williamson proved the unlikely hero for New Zealand with the ball, taking three quick wickets including the prized scalp of Al Hasan (7) to rip the heart out of the Bangladesh innings.
Opener Imrul Kayes fought admirably to give his side a fighting chance, but when he fell for 59 with the score at 136-6, the chase was as good as over.
They were eventually bowled out for 184 in the 43rd over to lose by 67 runs.
The third and final match in the series is in Nelson tomorrow.
Scorecard:
New Zealand
M Guptill lbw b Mashrafe Mortaza 0
T Latham lbw b Shakib Al Hasan 22
K Williamson c Shakib Al Hasan b Taskin Ahmed 14
N Broom not out 109
J Neesham st Nurul Hasan b Mosaddek Hossain 28
C Munro b Mashrafe Mortaza 3
L Ronchi c Tanbir Hayder b Taskin Ahmed 35
M Santner c Mashrafe Mortaza b Subashis Roy 9
T Southee c Nurul Hasan b Shakib Al Hasan 3
L Ferguson c Nurul Hasan b Mashrafe Mortaza 4
T Boult run out (Nurul Hasan/Taskin Ahmed) 12
Extras (b 1, lb 7, w 4) 12
Total (all out; 50 overs) 251
Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Guptill, 0.4 ov), 2-37 (Williamson, 10.5 ov), 3-47 (Latham, 13.1 ov), 4-98 (Neesham, 22.5 ov), 5-107 (Munro, 25.3 ov), 6-171 (Ronchi, 37.3 ov), 7-198 (Santner, 42.5 ov), 8-214 (Southee, 45.2 ov), 9-228 (Ferguson, 46.5 ov), 10-251 (Boult, 49.6 ov)
Bowling: Mortaza 10-1-49-3; Roy 10-1-45-1; Ahmed 10-1-45-2; Al Hasan 10-0-45-2; Hayder 8-0-47-0; Hossain 2-0-12-1
Bangladesh
T Iqbal c Latham b Southee 16
I Kayes c Broom b Southee 59
S Rahman run out (Williamson/Ronchi) 38
M Mahmudullah b Ferguson 1
S Al Hasan c Broom b Williamson 7
M Hossain c Neesham b Williamson 3
T Hayder st Ronchi b Williamson 2
N Hasan c Ronchi b Boult 24
M Mortaza c Williamson b Boult 17
T Ahmed st Ronchi b Santner 0
S Roy not out 1
Extras (b 1, lb 4, w 10, nb 1) 16
Total (all out; 42.4 overs) 184
Fall of wickets: 1-30 (Tamim Iqbal, 7.2 ov), 2-105 (Sabbir Rahman, 22.6 ov), 3-112 (Mahmudullah, 25.3 ov), 4-128 (Shakib Al Hasan, 28.4 ov), 5-134 (Mosaddek Hossain, 30.4 ov), 6-136 (Imrul Kayes, 31.3 ov), 7-141 (Tanbir Hayder, 32.4 ov), 8-162 (Mashrafe Mortaza, 36.4 ov), 9-175 (Taskin Ahmed, 39.3 ov), 10-184 (Nurul Hasan, 42.4 ov)
Bowling: Boult 8.4-0-26-2; Southee 9-1-33-2; Munro 2-0-12-0; Ferguson 8-0-53-1; Santner 8-1-20-1; Neesham 2-0-13-0; Williamson 5-0-22-3
