Both the Auckland and Otago sides probably watched their State Shield one-day cricket hopes being washed down the drain at Eden Park Outer Oval today

Flummoxed as much by the eccentricities of the Duckworth-Lewis system as they were by the dazzling Central Districts fielding, Auckland might have felt hard done by as they lost the State Shield one-day match by 19 runs at Eden Park Outer Oval today

The 267-minutes battle for 79 not out by the 32-year-old right-hander, Aminul Islam, nearly earned Bangladesh an unlikely draw in the four-day match against Auckland which ended at 11 o'clock this morning with Auckland winning by an innings and 193

Chris Drum, the 27-year-old Auckland medium-fast bowler, worked up good speed while he was demolishing the touring Bangladesh cricket side with his ten-wicket bag at Eden Park Outer Oval, but have to move even more smartly on Tuesday morning

The first cricket match against New Zealand at Hamilton starting next Tuesday must be a Test too far for the touring Bangladesh side which today just managed to get their four-day game against Auckland into the fourth day on the Eden Park Outer Oval

A mountainous third wicket stand of 265 runs by Matt Horne (178) and Aaron Barnes (95) all but squeezed the life out of the Bangladesh bowlers on the second day of their four-day game against Auckland on the Eden Park outer oval today

Bangladesh will have to improve their batting technique and mental approach in a hurry if they are to put up a good fight in the first Test against New Zealand starting at WestpacTrust Park in Hamilton next Tuesday

Trevor Chappell, the Australian-born coach, was not reading the riot act to his batsmen after the Bangladeshis scored a disappointingly slow 120 from 61 overs in the first innings of their four-day match against Auckland on the Eden Park Outer Oval

Stephen Fleming described his New Zealand cricket team as one of the few who have finished recent tours of Australia in a positive and confident frame of mind, and he will insist on a full-power effort against Bangladesh in their two Tests here later

Two umpiring mates, Brent Bowden and Tony Hill, chatted about their Christmas-present wish-list during the Auckland-Central Districts State Championship match at Eden Park Outer Oval last week

The touring Bangladeshi cricketers have given their New Zealand Cricket liaison officer, John Bishop, a record who no other man in world cricket possesses

Trevor Chappell was looking forward to honing the Bangladesh cricketers' skills on pitches greener and better than their bare home strips, but Auckland will make him and his eager charges wait

Funny about that

Bangladesh does not mind being the new kid on the international cricket playground and an automatic target for the big bullies

Auckland sprinted away to an eight-wicket win over Central Districts before lunch on the fourth day of the State Championship match on the Eden Park Outer Oval - a performance which should produce a couple of interesting echoes amid the New

Central Districts run the risk of leaving Eden Park tomorrow without any State Championship points - and facing a $1000 bill for a slow over-rate

Injured New Zealand medium-fast bowler Dion Nash seems on target to be fit for the first Test against Bangladesh at Hamilton on December 18-22

Ewen Thompson, the 21-year-old Central Districts left-arm bowler, joined the small ranks of one-armed cricketers when he batted one-handed against Auckland on the third day of their State Championship four-day match on the Eden Park Outer Oval today

A 284-minute epic of determined concentration by David Kelly, the 22-year-old Central Districts batsman, left him one short of his third first-class century as he led his side to an even share of the State Championship match against Auckland which

Dipak Patel, the Central Districts cricket coach, wants the national selectors to keep a close eye on his star batsman, the 22-year-old David Kelly whose 99 not out kept Central Districts afloat during the second day of the State Championship match