"Was nice to be out there and be part of some of the partnerships" - Kane Williamson

New Zealand registered a convincing win by 8 wickets over Bangladesh in the 11th match of the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on October 12. New Zealand won the toss and opted to bowl first.

Put into bat, Bangladesh could only manage 245 runs in 50 overs. Mushfiqur Rahim top-scored with 66 off 75. Lockie Ferguson picked up 3/49 as well. While chasing, New Zealand lost Rachin Ravindra quickly but Devon Conway and Kane Williamson steadied the ship where the latter smashed 78. Alongside him, Daryl Mitchell also scored 89* and sealed the deal as well.

See also: “It’s crucial that we don’t worry about external factors and just look at things we can control” – Rohit Sharma

Who said what after the match?

Kane Williamson: [on the knock to his thumb] Just made holding the bat a little tough. Secondary to the thumb (laughs). The guys in the first half with the ball were excellent. Was nice to build partnerships and take it deep. Midway through the powerplay we thought we can hit the deck a little hard. Good competitive wicket. Really good team performance. Lockie was outstanding. The seam bowlers were really effective. He hasn’t had the good fortune. Was nice to be out there and be part of some of the partnerships. Just scrapped through the new ball. Great team performance. Mitchell is a great contributor. He is a team first guy. He has been great to watch.

Najmul Hossain Shanto (comes in to talk in place of Shakib): [on Shakib] He is going for his scans. We will know after that. We didn’t bat well. We didn’t start well. We batted poorly even in the last game in the first 10-15 overs. The wicket looks good. Some bounce with the new ball. We have to bat little responsibly. If we bat a little carefully in the first 10-15, then we can do well. Our pace bowlers did well. I think the biggest improvement has been our fast bowling department. We will have to bat well.

See also: “Quinton needs to be given credit for the way he played” – Temba Bavuma

Lockie Ferguson, who won the Player of the Match said: It was a classic team effort from the Black Caps. Everyone bowled really, created pressure throughout and then I could come in and do my role. Compared to what we had in Hyderabad this had more bounce, I tried to test it out early and if it is working then stick to it, I pushed them back and then bowled the full ball. It is early stages but nice to get three wins. We are enjoying our time and the group is being great back together, looking forward to the next game. Fortunately I have got that experience (of travelling across India), I haven’t played here much but it’s nice to get around and see some pace in the wicket, playing Afghanistan here next and hopefully the same wicket.