Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim was released from hospital after being admitted for precautionary tests when he was for struck on the head by a bouncer on the final day of the first cricket Test against New Zealand Monday. Mushfiqur was taken to hospital shortly before lunch when he was struck on the back of the helmet as he tried to duck under a low bouncer from New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee. He knelt, then collapsed to the ground near the pitch and lay motionless for almost 20 minutes as he received treatment from paramedics and team medical staff. There were fears Mushfiqur had suffered a serious injury but after arriving at Wellington Hospital, only about 100 meters from the Basin Reserve where the match was being played, he was able to get word to his teammates that he was feeling better. He asked that his family in Bangladesh be informed that he was well. Mushfiqur was able to rejoin his team after precautionary tests and in time for the end of the match, which New Zealand won by chasing down its winning target of 217 runs, thanks to an unbeaten century by captain Kane Williamson. "I'm feeling much better. Things could have been worse," Mushfiqur said. "Luckily I escaped. There is a bit of pain there but hopefully I'll get through." Mushfiqur was 13 not out and had batted 80 minutes with a broken finger against a barrage of short-pitched bowling from New Zealand before he was struck by Southee. He was unable to bat again in the innings and is in doubt for the second Test which starts at Hagley Oval in Christchurch Friday. Although serious injuries are uncommon in cricket, any hits to the head are treated extremely seriously. Both New Zealand and Bangladesh later defended the short ball as a legitimate weapon following the bouncer-laden first Test. Kane Williamson led New Zealand in a stunning fightback to win the Test Monday after Bangladesh was reduced to nine wickets in its second innings with Mushfiqur injured. "It's a tactic to get players out," Williamson said. "It is very unfortunate when you do see someone get hit. It's obviously a delicate place and both teams were very concerned when it happened. "It was sad to see. It's never nice to see someone in an ambulance on the cricket field but nice to see he's OK now." Bangladesh also made ample use of the bouncer with Neil Wagner hit three times in his first innings with one ball slamming the helmet grille into his face and leaving him with a cut chin. Tamim Iqbal, who took over the leadership of the Bangladesh side, had no complaints about the tactic and likened a threatening short delivery in New Zealand to facing spin in the subcontinent. "That's part of the game. You can't complain about it," he said. "That was their strategy maybe. I have no complaints. I am sure Mushy (Mushfiqur) doesn't have complaints too. "When they come to Bangladesh we know that they don't like playing spin, we'll bowl spin all day, that's what happens."
