Kane Williamson displayed a batting masterclass against spin on day 2 of the ongoing 1st Test between Bangladesh and New Zealand in Sylhet and scored his 29th century in the format to keep the visitors afloat. Williamson's ton has helped the Balckcaps narrow down the 1st innings deficit to 44 runs and they still have two wickets left in their kitty.
The day started off on a brighter note for the Kiwis as they didn't let the hosts add anything to their overnight total of 310. Skipper Tim Southee trapped Shoriful Islam in front of his stumps and brought an end to the resistance of the Bangladesh tail.
For New Zealand, it turned out to be a day that saw all of their batters getting promising starts but none of them really managed to kick on and post a big total on the scoreboard barring their former Test captain Williamson. Only Daryl Mitchell (41) and Glenn Phillips (42) managed to provide some support to Williamson and helped the Southee-led side battle Bangladesh spinners on a spinning track.
Mitchell and Williamson added 66 runs for the fourth wicket whereas Phillips and Williamson put together a 78-run stand for the sixth wicket to bring the side closer to Bangladesh's first innings total. Kane played some exquisite strokes and put an exhibition of his ability to tackle spin bowling while the other Kiwi batters struggled.
Taijul Islam put an end to Williamson's long vigil as he struck gold with the second new ball. Taijul's delivery sneaked through Williamson's nearly impregnable defence and castled him on 104. New Zealand ended the day with a score of 266/8 and have their skipper (1) and Kyle Jamieson (7) in the middle.
Day 3 will be the moving day and will likely bring more intriguing tussle between the two sides.
