Australian Test captain Pat Cummins has opened up on his team’s nine-wicket defeat to Bangladesh in the first Test of the two-match series, which concluded on Sunday, August 16, in Darwin.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Cummins has asserted that Day 1 didn’t go out as planned after electing to bat first. In the first innings, Australia could score only 198 runs as Hasan Mahmud scalped a six-wicket haul.
“Probably that day one. I thought our preparation was pretty much spot on. I thought it was excellent. So, no excuses. They played really well. I thought the day one wicket was doing a little bit early, but obviously got to try and find a way to bat a little bit longer than we did, and then, just couldn’t penetrate with the ball. But, I thought they played really well,” Pat Cummins said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
In response, Bangladesh went on to score 426 runs in 138 overs. Tanzid Hasan Tamim (101) was the top scorer. Josh Hazlewood racked up a six-fer. In the third innings, Australia could score only 284 runs, with Cameron Green scoring a 104-run knock.
In the fourth innings, Bangladesh chased down the target in 14.2 overs with nine wickets in hand. Pacer Hasan Mahmud was adjudged the player of the match for his nine-wicket match haul.
“I think every time there’s a game like this, you always kind of look at your match-ups and your make-up of the team for the next one. But we only just finished, so we’ll think about it. We’re pretty good at bouncing back, so no doubt the batters and every group will get together and have a good think about this one and where we can improve,” he added.
“(On Bangladesh having played well) Yeah, they did. I think they outplayed us in all facets, really. I thought they were really patient and quite disciplined. And, yeah, once we were behind, it was really hard to get back,” he concluded.
It’s important to note that Australia have lost a home Test to an Asian team other than India for the first time in 31 years, since 1995.
