Bangladesh ODI captain, Tamim Iqbal, lauded Test skipper Mominul Haque for his leadership qualities following their historic win over New Zealand in the first Test at the Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui. Ebadot Hossain picked up a six-wicket haul in the second innings as Bangladesh defeated New Zealand by eight wickets in the first Test. "The situation was tougher this time. But the team crossed all the barriers to bring a wonderful win. Beating New Zealand in New Zealand is one of the toughest jobs in world cricket. We showed that we can. What really touched me was that it was a total team effort. It is a team with great spirit," said Tamim Iqbal as reported by ESPNcricinfo.
"No praise is enough for Ebadot [Hossain]. [Mahmudul Hasan] Joy, [Najmul Hossain] Shanto, Liton [Das], [Mehidy Hasan] Miraz and Yasir [Ali] everyone contributed in the win. Even Taijul Islam took a brilliant catch as a substitute."
"I will mention someone separately. At a very difficult time, when no one believed in the team, when there was doubt within the team too, only one man didn't lose his belief. He always tried to motivate the team by saying 'we can, we definitely can', despite bad days, bad performances. He has tremendous love for Test cricket. He gives the most priority to Test cricket. I doff my cap to the captain, Mominul Haque," he added.
Needing 40 runs for the win, Bangladesh wrapped up the chase in overs with Mominul Haque (13*) and Mushfiqur Rahim (5*) remaining at the crease. For New Zealand, Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson picked up one wicket each in the second innings.
Earlier, resuming Day 5 at 147/5, hosts New Zealand managed to add just 22 more runs to the total, setting Bangladesh a target of just 40 runs for the win.
With this win, Bangladesh has become the first team to defeat New Zealand in New Zealand in a Test match since March 2017. This is also Bangladesh's first Test victory over the BlackCaps.