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Three points on Bangladesh's performance in the Tri-Nation Series

Bangladesh's Tamim Iqbal plays a shot during the third day of the first test cricket match against Australia in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017. (AP Photo/A.M. Ahad)
Roar Guru
30th January, 2018
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The recently concluded Tri-Nation Series in Bangladesh ended with Sri Lanka clinching the title with a convincing victory over the hosts in the final. This comes as a big boost to the young Lankan team who are still very much in the rebuilding stages.

As for the hosts, it was a disappointing end to an event which started very brightly for them with three successive victories.

This tournament was organized by BCB with a view to build the ODI team for the 2019 WC. That’s why the performances of the local team deserve critical analysis.

It was an impressive performance from the Bangladesh seamers and by far the biggest positive for the Tigers in this event. Specifically, given that Bangladesh are expected to play at least three seamers during the 2019 WC in England and Wales, the performances of Mashrafe Mortaza, Mustafizur Rahman and Rubel Hasan came as a big boost.

Interestingly, out of the three, only Mash bowled with the new ball in the event and was most impressive with it. Time and again he gave early breakthroughs for his side. His most impressive effort came in the second match against Zimbabwe.

In a pitch with variable pace, Bangladesh could only muster 216/9 from their 50 overs giving the Africans the hopes of an upset victory. But the hopes ended very quickly as the Tigers’ captain, in a hostile spell with the new ball, dismissed the two experienced Zim players Hamilton Masakadza and Craig Ervine cheaply.

Left-armed Mustafiz took seven wickets in five matches in this event, but his economy rate was most impressive. He got his off-cutters (leg cutters for right-handers) going well, and none of the opposition batsmen during this event looked comfortable against him.

It seems the Tigers’ game-plan is to use him in the middle overs with a slightly older ball.

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Rubal, the third seamer, bowled in his usual fashion. He went for pace, often sacrificing accuracy. So, at times he was a bit expensive, but he was among the wickets regularly as well.

Bangladesh cricket

(AP Photo/A.M. Ahad)

Bangladesh wants to use him as a wicket-taking bowler, and he didn’t disappoint his fans here. His best bowling, 4/46, came in the final against SL. There he got his reverse swing going with the old ball, and his late burst meant that SL who were going nicely at 113/2 in the 24th over could eventually only manage 223 all out.

Sadly, a top-order collapse for the home side meant that his fine effort eventually went in vain.

The young batsmen have failed again. Over the last three years or so, both Soumya Sarkar and Sabbir Rahman have become something of a dilemma for our national selectors. At their best, they are both attractive stroke-makers of the highest class.

They both possess some rich array of strokes; yet poor shot selections have frequently let them down. Here, Soumya paid for his recent lack of form and was dropped. Sabbir had his chances but failed to take them.

Things started pretty well for him. After he was not required to bat in the opening fixture, he smashed a quick-fire 24 of 12 deliveries against SL, delighting the holiday crowd with some big hitting. Sadly, he followed this effort with scores of 6, 10 and 2.

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Some of his fans feel that he comes in to bat too late, giving him little opportunity to settle at the wicket. This, however, can’t explain his failure in the final. Shakib Al Hasan injured himself in the field, and Sabbir came in to bat at the vital No.3 position.

Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al-Hasan

(AP Photo/A.M. Ahad, file)

It was an ideal opportunity for him to establish himself, yet he perished after scoring only 2. An average of just over 25 from 51 matches can’t be good enough for a specialist batsman, and despite his immense popularity among the young fans here, his future in the international arena seems a bit uncertain at the moment.

Anamul Haque, a solid right-handed opener got the opportunity here at Soumya’s expense. But, after scoring 19,35,1 and 0 he lost his place in the final.

Even that score of 35 came mainly due to the generosity of the Lankan fielders, who dropped him three times before his eventual dismissal.

The inconsistency of the young Tiger batsmen is putting extra pressure on the experienced batsmen time and again.

The second all-rounder’s slot is still open: Bangladesh is very lucky to have a world-class all-rounder in Shakib. However, the team’s chances of success can increase greatly if we can find another. Mahmuddullah is mainly considered as a batsman these days; so there were chances for three youngsters Mohammad Saifuddin, Mehidy Miraz and Sunzamul Islam plus experienced Nasir Hossain to stake their claims for the role.

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Saifuddin deserves special attention, as he is a medium pace bowling all-rounder, a type that Bangladesh has been looking for the last two decades. Also, such all-rounders can be especially useful in English conditions. So far, he has played only three ODIs and there is still time for him to develop his skills.

Miraz and Sunzamul are spin bowling all-rounders; a very common type in the domestic cricket. While both look quite impressive with the ball, they haven’t scored the runs they are capable of.

The case of Nasir Hossain, a free-flowing right-hand bat is very confusing. For the last year or so, he has been used as a lower order (seventh or eighth) batsman and occasional off-break bowler. This has left him with the role of a fringe player; a complete waste of his enormous talents.

In this situation, Mosaddek Hossain, who averages 32 with the bat, and bowls useful off-spin, may get a recall in the national squad.

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