First Test 3rd day press briefing : The match is evenly poised - Jeetan Patel

[Miraz]

CHITTAGONG (TigerCricket.com): Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan and Jeetan Patel after the third day's play in the first Test of the Brac Bank Series at the Bir Shrestha Shahid Ruhul Amin Stadium here:

Mushfiqur Rahim

On the pitch
It hasn't changed in character that much especially in the wicket to wicket corridor. There are roughs on the sides and there has been some uneven bounce but I don't think wickets have fallen because of that.

Expectations on day four
We have looked at their record and they have never successfully chased 250. I believe if we can get a lead into the 275-280 region and bowl like we did in the first innings then we can definitely expect something good.

On Shakib Al Hasan
He is a very important member of the side and we have seen his ability in the one day matches and we expect a lot from him. Now he has delivered in a Test match also. That is good for him and also for the team. Here he has bowled well in the first innings and then batted beautifully in the second innings. I hope he will bowl as well in the second innings and set us up for something special.

His assessment of the match scenario
If we hadn't lost those two wickets towards the end then it would have been a lot better. I can't say that we are in a good position still because our target is to get a lead of 280 to 300. We won't be same until we manage that.

Safe lead
Like I have said anything in the region of 280 to 300. It will make their task very difficult in the fourth innings because they don't have too many experienced batsmen.

On whether there will be more responsibility on him with the soinners coming to play in the fourth innings
Obviously. Myself and the close in fielders will have a vital role to play and I will try my best to grab every opportunity that comes my way.

Shakib Al Hasan

His remarks to the media on Saturday that scoring a 70 was more important to him than taking 6 wickets
You always want more and there is no end to it. After coming back to the dressing room I thought why I didn't say 30 runs more in yesterday's press briefing!

Whether the team believes it can win
From the position we are in if we can take all the chances that come our way then we will win Inshallah.

On Chittagong as the venue for his debut and now the bowling record and 71 runs in the second innings
Now that you have reminded me I guess Chittagong will always be a special place for me.

His emotions after three days
It feels really great. When you bat, bowl and field well and give service to the team then the feeling is always great.

Whether he ever expected such a bowling performance as he is primarily known as a batsman
I didn't think about it that much. I guess it was a gift from God because I don't work that much with my bowling. That's why I had said yesterday that scoring a 70 is more important to me. However, from now on I think I'll give more importance to bowling and I have always worked hard at batting and will continue to do so.

His feelings on getting the best figures (25.5-7-36-7) for Bangladesh
It hasn't quite sunk in yet. Maybe when I retire from the game or in a few days time I will think 'hey, I have got the best bowling record for Bangladesh' and feel great about it.

Jeetan Patel

Match situation
I think it is poised pretty well. We bowled really well today and brought ourselves back into the match. We have got two wickets to get tomorrow morning and hopefully we'll get them early and then knock of the runs in the afternoon and the fifth day.

Would the fact that New Zealand have never successfully chased a target in excess of 200 play in their minds
Not necessarily. I think we're in a strong position as well and Bangladesh are not that far ahead. If you look at stats you can say it goes each way. The guys know the game plan really well. We've worked a few things out and looking forward to the challenge tomorrow.

The mood in the dressing room
Well, the guys needed to work out their game plans and I think they have. They had a day and a half to do it. We've seen some good batting from the Bangladeshis as well and also the fact that the belief is still there. We've got a lot of time to win the game and that's in our hand.

Whether the wicket was too conducive to spin bowling
It was always going to turn. We always expected to come over here and play on spinning wickets. Like we showed it's easy when the ball gets older and we just got to guts it out for a good 30-40 overs and make the runs when the chance arrives. Like I said if we can bat for a long period of time then we've got a good chance.

Whether getting hit for three boundaries in a row was an encouraging sign for his team's batters
Definitely. There's plenty of runs out there. I don't think it's that bad a wicket. A lot of the guys are saying that it's going up and down but I don't think the wicket's that bad. There's still a little bit of turn there. There's a little bit of variable bounce but otherwise I think we'll be in a good position tomorrow to knock this off.

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