MACKAY (AUSTRALIA): Mitchell Starc removed Bangladesh opener Shadman Islam with the first ball of the match and the veteran Australian fast bowler took five wickets in the first session of the second cricket test Saturday.
After Australia won the toss and decided to bowl, with captain Pat Cummins suggesting "the wicket looks pretty good, but if there is any moisture in it, it might be this morning,” Starc proved Cummins correct.
Islam was caught in the gully off a leading edge to give Starc his fourth career wicket on the first ball of a match. Starc removed Tanzid Hasan and had captain Najmul Hossain Shanto caught lbw in the third over to leave Bangladesh, which surprisingly won the first test of the two-test series, reeling.
Starc got his fourth wicket when Nathan Green made a grass-top catch to remove Mominul Haque for 9, the only Bangladesh batter to score a run among the first four batters Saturday. His fifth wicket came when he had Litton Das trapped lbw.
At lunch Saturday, Bangladesh was 35 for 6, having lost its sixth wicket when Cummins bowled Mushfiqur Rahim.
Starc's figures were 5-11 in nine overs.
“Six in the first session, can't beat that,” Starc told his wife, television commentator and former Australia captain Alyssa Healy while walking off the field at lunch. “Obviously a little bit of anger. It's worked well so far, hopefully we can keep it up.”
Australia announced a 13-man squad earlier this week, with only one change for the second test. It dropped Jake Weatherald and recalled Matt Renshaw, who will open the batting.
Bangladesh also made one change — Shoriful Islam came in for Ebadot Hossain.
The match began under sunny skies at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay, a coastal city in Queensland state about 800 kilometers (500 miles) north of the capital Brisbane.
Bangladesh's first test win in Australia put pressure on national cricket selectors for an overhaul, but the bulk of the aging squad was retained despite being outplayed in Darwin, where the likes of Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Hasan made the most of the tropical conditions.
The two-test “Top End” series starts a heavy 12-month schedule for the Australians that will feature 20 test matches, including tours to South Africa, India and England.