‘Liton never looked under pressure’

The way Liton Das stood tall and pulled short deliveries of New Zealand quicks for boundaries with ease probably served as a statement to the Kiwi seamers that Bangladesh would not easily give in to their aggression.  

"Everyone batted really well. Liton batted as his natural self. He batted the way he always does. His batting is always good to watch and it never seemed like he was under pressure. How easily he negotiated the pacers and as well as the spinners was absolutely brilliant," said Bangladesh team director Khaled Mahmud after the third day's play between Bangladesh and New Zealand in their first Test at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui today. 

Liton, who missed out on picking up his second Test ton for just 14 runs, deserved every bit of Mahmud's praise. His fluent 177-ball 86 along with skipper Mominul Haque's determined 244-ball 88 helped Bangladesh end the third day on top, scoring 401 for six and a lead of 73 runs.

While Mominul was at times shaky and rode on his luck twice – dropped on 8 and got away with a caught-behind on 9 due to a no ball by Neil Wagner – Liton was graceful and elegant all the way till his only faulty shot, a hard slash at an outside off delivery by Trent Boult, ended his brilliant innings. 

Bangladesh's batting order crumbled horrifically in face of Pakistan's pace threat at home just in the last series. There were concerns as to how the Tigers would fare against the likes of Tim Southee, Boult, Kyle Jamieson and Wagner at their own backyard where Bangladesh could never win a single outing out of the 32 played across formats.   

Moreover, much like the Bangladesh side, Liton had come into this series on the back of criticisms. While his recent performance in the longest format remained impeccable, Liton was dropped from the T20 side after a dismal T20 World Cup last year. 

"There was a pressure on him since underperforming in the [T20] World Cup as he could not score runs in that tournament. But we know how capable he is. He has always scored less than what he is capable of but today he was just brilliant and eye-soothing," said Mahmud.

Unlike in the limited over matches, Liton has been amongst the runs in Tests. He picked up his maiden Test ton in the previous series against Pakistan. And the way he batted today, with such dominance, ease and authority over the Kiwi quicks, it certainly ought to boost the confidence of the elegant right-hander who has always been criticised for underperforming than his actual ability.