SPORTS

New Zealand vow to crush Bangladesh in 2nd Test

January 11, 2008 11:37 IST
Not satisfied with wrapping up the first Test in less than three days, New Zealand have vowed to be even more ruthless against Bangladesh in the second Test starting at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Saturday.

The New Zealanders crushed Bangladesh by nine wickets in last week's series opener in Dunedin, but captain Daniel Vettori said his players wanted to win by an even bigger margin this time.

"There's no letting off within the team. It's almost the opposite," Vettori told the New Zealand Press Association on Friday.

"The guys are pushing harder to get the result we need in even a better fashion than Dunedin."

Former skipper Stephen Fleming also ruled out any fears of complacency amongst his players, saying they were highly motivated to do well after their recent defeats in South Africa and Australia.

"It's a lot easier to turn up when you're expected to win," Fleming said.

"We're enjoying being the dominant side but I guess we've got one eye looking towards the rest of the summer without slipping up against Bangladesh."

Bangladesh have won just one of 50 Tests against all countries, but New Zealand coach John Bracewell said his team could not take any pity on them as they prepare to play England next.

"We're pretty realistic as to where we're at when we do our review," Bracewell said.

"I thought we were quite comprehensive in the one-day series in terms of ruthlessness. We had a day off being ruthless in Dunedin and that's not good enough if we're to compete with the big boys."

Both teams have delayed naming their teams because of selection dilemmas.

Paceman Mark Gillespie was ruled out of the New Zealand team with a shoulder injury, leaving Iain O'Brien and Michael Mason to battle it out for the third seamer's spot.

Bangladesh's Australian coach Jamie Siddons is expected to change his batting lineup that failed in Dunedin. The lone exceptions were the two openers, Tamim Iqbal and Junaid Siddique.

Teams:

New Zealand (from): Daniel Vettori (captain,), Craig Cumming, Matthew Bell, Peter Fulton, Stephen Fleming, Mathew Sinclair, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum, Kyle Mills, Michael Mason, Iain O'Brien, Chris Martin, Jeetan Patel.

Bangladesh (from): Mohammad Ashraful (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique, Habibul Bashar, Aftab Ahmed, Shahriar Nafees, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqir Rahim, Mashrafe Mortaza, Farhad Reza, Rajin Saleh, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Enamul Haque, Sajidul Islam. (Reporting by Julian Linden in Sydney; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

Source: REUTERS
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