NZ vs BAN: New Zealand Secures Victory in Third T20, Evening the Series Against Bangladesh

In a rain-impacted third and final Twenty20 international match on Sunday, New Zealand, led by captain Mitchell Santner’s four-wicket haul, secured a 17-run victory over Bangladesh, drawing the series 1-1.

New Zealand initially bowled out Bangladesh for 110 runs in Mount Maunganui. Despite a shaky start by the Kiwi top-order, which fell to 49-5, Jimmy Neesham and Santner led a recovery, pushing the score to 95-5 in 14.4 overs. The match was halted due to heavy rain, but New Zealand was already ahead based on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method, primarily thanks to Neesham’s unbeaten 28.

This outcome prevented Bangladesh from claiming their first series win in any format on New Zealand soil, following their 2-1 loss in the ODI series.

Santner praised his bowlers for restricting Bangladesh to 110 and acknowledged the challenging nature of the series. He also recognized the pressure exerted by the Bangladesh bowlers.

Santner’s bowling performance (4-16 off four overs) was pivotal in limiting Bangladesh’s innings, which was faltering at 41-3 when he started bowling. New Zealand’s seamers Tim Southee, Adam Milne, and Ben Sears each claimed two wickets. Milne (2-23) notably dismissed Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, the top-scorer with 17 runs.

Shanto expressed disappointment at the inability of their batsmen to capitalize on starts, noting the importance of the top order in T20 matches.

For New Zealand, four top-order batsmen were out for just one run each. Following Finn Allen’s contribution of 38, Neesham played a crucial role in steadying the innings under threatening weather conditions, with Santner remaining unbeaten at 18.

Bangladesh’s seam bowler Shoriful Islam took 2-17 in 3.4 overs. The first game of the series in Napier was won by Bangladesh by five wickets, while the second match in Mount Maunganui was abandoned due to rain.