'New Zealand are under pressure' - Mushfiqur

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim wants his side to continue the consistency they showed in the first Test, and feels that New Zealand are the team under more pressure.

"I think they are under pressure," Mushfiqur said. "It is not easy to play in our home conditions. They wouldn't want to lose to a side ranked lower than them.

"We want to win this Test match. I think they would also want a result in this game. After the first two days, you can see which way the game is heading. The first innings is going to be vital in this Test. So we want to start well."

But in the last couple of years, Bangladesh's record in second Tests of the usual two-match series that they play have been poor, particularly after they impressed in the first match of the series.

Against Sri Lanka in March, they drew the first Test in Galle but were strangled in Colombo, to lose by seven wickets. Similarly at home in 2012, they ran West Indies close in the first Test in Dhaka before going down easily in Khulna. Against the same opponents in 2011, a similar theme continued when they drew the first Test but was crushed by 229 runs in the second game.

Mushfiqur believes that since the home team dominated long passages of play and had more individual performances in Chittagong, they hold the upper hand over the visitors.

"We are hungry to win the second Test," Mushfiqur said. "We had a lot of gains from the first game, but it was a draw. We wanted to win. The whole team is keen to win the game and the series. It is a huge challenge to play well in two Tests in a row, but the players are responsible these days. So I hope we remain consistent.

"We dominated three days of the Chittagong Test, so I would say we are ahead of them, mentally. Several players are just itching to get out there and perform. If we can combine it as a team, we will do well."

Some say that Mushfiqur's biggest advantage is that two of his best players, Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan, are yet to make big contributions in 2013. They have had quiet times in Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and in the Chittagong Test against New Zealand. Shakib did get a fifty in the second innings, but still hasn't hit the level he has maintained in the last four years.

"Shakib and Tamim are relaxed. They are always thinking about doing well in the next match. There are more performers in the team, around seven or eight guys. But the records of those two in Mirpur are great, so I am hoping that they do well here."

Bangladesh are likely to keep the same playing eleven, but there were some murmurs of a third seamer being given a go in place of Abdur Razzak."It is likely that we will play the same combination. We will take a call tomorrow morning, but I am hoping to keep the seven batsman-four bowlers blend intact."