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Published : 25 Feb 2025, 01:54 AM
New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner showered praise on Michael Bracewell for adjusting to flat tracks after the spinner bagged four wickets in their comprehensive Champions Trophy win over Bangladesh on Monday.
Player-of-the-match Bracewell's 4-26 were the best figures for a Black Caps spin bowler in the Champions Trophy, surpassing Paul Wiseman's 4-45 against Zimbabwe 25 years ago, and it meant Bangladesh were restricted to 236-9 in their 50 overs.
"He's a quality bowler now in the way he's been able to change his pace on these wickets where it tends to be a touch flatter," Santner said after his side chased down the modest total with 23 balls remaining.
"He's been outstanding ... The key in this tournament is to be able to take wickets in that middle phase (of matches). Today we were able to do that."
Rachin Ravindra also played a vital role with a superb 112 during the chase, his fourth one-day international century after three in the 2023 World Cup.
"He's doing Rachin things. He loves ICC events and looked like he never left the game," Santner said of the left-hander, who only came into the side due to Daryl Mitchell's illness.
"He wasn't as fluent as he probably would have liked (to be) but when he's going he's tough to stop and that partnership with Tom really put us in a good spot."
Victory ensured New Zealand reached the semi-finals of the tournament along with India and the two teams will face off in Dubai on Sunday to determine who tops Group A.
"It's going to be another challenge on a different surface," Santner added.
"It looks like it's a slower pitch than what we'll get here. We'll see what happens."
Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto rued his team's limp batting display but looked ahead to Thursday's dead rubber against hosts Pakistan.
"It's an important game. If we finish on a high note it'll give us a lot of confidence," Shanto added.
