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Series Salad

BISHWAJIT ROY
Bangladesh coach Dav Whatmore was desperate to improve the patience of his charges. So before the Test series the otherwise fitness-happy coach made his batsmen practice long hours on the central wicket at the Bangabandhu National Stadium.
The ploy of the coach seemed to have worked well as his side batted the entire first day. But it all went wrong the following morning when the Tigers lost their last four wickets in just 42 minutes. And worst of all not a single run was added to Bangladesh's overnight total of 1656 when fast bowler James Franklin became only the second New Zealander to take a hattrick in the longer-version of the game.
Statistics buffs will find it amusing that Bangladesh's first innings lasted exactly 403 minutes, which was way behind Whatmore's target of 40 minutes-per-batsman that he allocated in the nets.
"We were expecting a real fightback today. We had every faith in the tail which has bailed out the side on numerous occasions. But it did not happen much to our frustration," quipped a dejected fan.
MASHUD'S DIFFERENT 50
Bangladesh wicketkeeper Khaled Mashud, who is leading the Tigers in the first Test against New Zealand in absence of injured Habibul Bashar, may have missed a chance to score a half-century with the bat but he completed a different kind of fifty later on the second day.
The 28-year-old Rajshahi stumper must have rued his luck while trudging back to the dressing room after playing one of his typical doughty innings (23 not out off 91 balls) after the Bangladesh tail collapsed in no time in the morning.
Mashud however completed his fifty-landmark with the gloves when he took the catches of New Zealand
opener Mark Richardson and captain Stephen Fleming off the bowling of left-arm spinners Mohammad afique and Manzarul Islam.
Nicknamed 'Pilot', the popular cricketer has been an indispensable member of the team since Bangladesh attained Test status. His 50 Test victims also include five stumpings in 28 appearances.
AKRAM UP FOR GRABS Legendary Pakistani fast bowler Wasim Akram said that he is ready to lend his support to Bangladesh cricket.
"It is very difficult to work as a full time coach but if the Bangladesh board wants then I can work as a bowling consultant," said the 'sultan of swing' while chatting with some local reporters yesterday.
The 38-year-old Akram recently said he was keen to get into coaching but probably not in Pakistan.
The heartthrob among the
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Bangladesh cricket fans, Akram is now in the city to commentate on the Bangladesh-New Zealand Tests series.
He was happy to see Kiwi pacer James Franklin claim the second hattrick on Dhaka soil after his exploit against Sri Lanka in the 1999 Asian Test Championship.
"Hattrick is a hattrick especially on this kind of wicket where there is little or no assistance for a seamer. But the batsman should have been more careful not to give him such an easy wicket," said Akram, the only bowler to claim the feat in both versions of the game.
Akram will leave Dhaka after the first Test. But his former partner in crime Waqar Younis along Indian opening batsman Arun Lal will be arriving soon to cover the three-match one-day series.