Tigers are ready to take on India
SYED MEHDI MOMIN
The next challenge for Bangladesh cricket team will begin from June 10 when the Tigers will take on the powerful Indian team for a Test match at Fatullah. While Bangladesh has made great progress in limited over cricket in the recent years they are yet to develop a solid Test team. Much of the success has come in One Day Internationals (ODIS). In fact Bangladeshs rise in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) has been phenomenal. Not only did they make it to the quarter-final of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, they also completed a whitewash over Pakistan at home in the recently-concluded bilateral series. It can safely be said that Bangladesh can beat any side on its day in an ODI encounter.
Unfortunately though, their limited over success has not been replicated in the highest and most sublime form of the game. In the two-Test series against Pakistan Bangladeshs weakness, which mainly lies in their bowling, was exposed. Their inability to pick up 20 wickets in either match gave them no chance of winning the game.
To win any Test match the bowlers must have the ability to take all opposition wickets. We are not saying that Bangladeshi bowlers lack talent, but they must also apply themselves on the field and have sufficient levels of fitness to carry themselves for the entire five days. The local first-class structure is still relatively weak and to prepare themselves for Test cricket the bowlers need the art of bowling long spells. Also Bangladesh does not get enough opportunity to play Test cricket.
You learn the nuances of playing long innings and bowling long spells by doing these on a more regular basis. A team brimming with potential and confidence is being prevented from developing as a Test nation because of the vicious circle of playing the best so rarely that it doesnt get enough of the sort of games that will toughen it up to be competitive against them. You only get good at any format by playing it. Bangladeshs players are becoming excellent at 50-over cricket because they play it all the time, for instance in premier domestic competition the Dhaka Premier League. Bangladesh has never had so much quality as it does in its current team, or so much Test potential. To realise that potential, the Tigers need to play against the best.
On a more positive note in the Test series against Pakistan Tamim Iqbal has been partying like its his great season of 2010 and has claimed two fine centuries. Mushfiqur Rahim has confirmed his quality in both the games, in particular with his effortless 77-ball 106 in the first. Add Shakib al Hasan, the teams best batsman for a while; the often-frustrating Mohammad Mahmudullah, who flourished in the World Cup with 365 runsthe ninth most in the tournament, at an average of 73and Mominul Haque, returning for the Tests with an average of 63.05 from his 12 games, and you have a potentially imposing Test batting line up.
In fact a player like Mominul Haque can become one of the best Test batsman with an excellent record if he plays more regularly. With a perfect combination of rock-solid technique and true grit, Bangladeshs Mominul Haque is a batsman for the future. Mominul has a unique record with the second highest Test average amongst all batsmen in history who have completed 500 runs at the least. Unfortunately Bangladesh will be missing the services of Tamim Iqbal as a tumour was recently detected in his knees. Mahmudullah will unfortunately miss the series against India due to injury. However Imrul, Kayes, Anamul Haque, Nasir Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, all are talented enough to not let Bangladeshs cause hurt too much.
The most encouraging sign for Bangladesh, though, particularly when it comes to its chances of winning regularly outside Asia, is the improvement in its quick bowlers. Rubel Hossain has added reliability to his muscularity, while Taskin Ahmed, who combines whippy speed with late swing, has taken 19 wickets at 26.15 in his 11 ODIs, and is ripe for Test selection. The new addition Mohammad Shahid can also develop into a fine pace bowler in all form of the game.
He is not very fast but his stamina and fitness are commendable. As a matter of fact fitness is a major issue plaguing Bangladeshi bowlers. Fast bowler Shahadat Hossain bowled only two deliveries in the entire match against Pakistan in the second Test at Dhaka and walked out of the field after he injured himself and now faces a long lay-off. That naturally cost Bangladesh, and they eventually went on to lose the series.
Indians are coming here with a full strength squad. There were speculations in some quarters that some of the bigger names of Indian cricket might want some rest after having a long season. But the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decided to name a full-strength squad. This will surely give Virat Kohli a golden opportunity to register his first win as captain. The Indian batting line-up consisting of Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, and Cheteshwar Pujara is sure to cause panic among any bowling attack, let alone Bangladesh. Added to this India have recalled Harbhajan Singh into their squad. Harbhajan, especially in sub continental conditions, is sure to be a handful for the Bangladeshi batsmen. The best Bangladesh can hope for is a drawn Test match.
The lone Test match will be followed by three ODI matches. Here things could get really interesting. Of course India will start as the favourites. Usually it is the team with the stronger batting line up that wins an ODI series. Indias batting, on paper at least, far superior than that of Bangladesh. However if Indians show complacency they could be in for a rude shock. Indians are cricket giants no doubt but Bangladeshis surely prove to be as giant slayers if they really apply themselves and play to their full potential. Indias style of cricket as well as their frailties are familiar to Bangladesh. And this will allow Bangladesh to plan better. India have beaten Bangladesh on many occasions earlier and so the Indians may be confident that they can do the same this time also. But on current form, Bangladesh are a very dangerous side.
Previously, Bangladesh players were unable to follow up an impressive series performance with another one. This was clearly evident in the 2007 ICC World Cup when the Tigers reached the Super Eights only to lose their next four series against India, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and South Africa. It was, therefore, imperative for the Tigers to prove that their quarter-final appearance in the 2015 ICC World Cup was no fluke and they destroyed Pakistan in all the three ODI matches.
The coach Chandika Haturasinghas contribution has not been given due acknowledgement. Most players agree that his role has been a highly positive one. Hathurusingha himself said that the improvement on-field performance was the result of the Bangladesh players clarity of communication with themselves and the coaching staff. He had talked during and after the World Cup about how he was willing to give the batsmen more freedom. You need to have clarity in whatever you say to the players. They are talented enough to take their own decisions. My job is to be clear and give them freedom to make decisions in the middle. As long as they do that, it makes me happy. What you see in the middle is the clarity of what we are talking about in the dressing room,
One thing that may work for Bangladesh is that Tigers that they are playing on their home-grounds. Pressure, I believe will not be much on the Bangladesh players. Sure, the fans will hope for the best but India have it a lot harder, in every sense of the word. Simply put, no team riding a wave as high as Indias would want to lose to a lower-ranked team. Bangladesh players have mentioned it a few times in the past that they find extra motivation when playing against India. Nobody has been able to put a finger on the exact reasons but this has emerged mostly after they won in the 2007 World Cup in Port-of-Spain. They have only won once more, in the 2012 Asia Cup, but the players never stop talking about the excitement of playing against India. Who doesnt like beating their neighbours, especially a big one
like India?
The revelation in Bangladeshs batting in the last couple of months has been the ability of their batsmen to carry on after getting starts, and converting them into hundreds. In their last six ODIs Bangladesh have scored six hundreds, with Tamim and Mahmudullah getting two each. Their previous six hundreds took 27 ODIs, going back all the way to December 2012. In fact, six ODI hundreds in a calendar year is already a record for Bangladesh - before 2015 theyd never managed more than four.
For once, Bangladeshi players have the countenance of a side that has most bases covered. Its nascent pace bowling arsenal is especially encouraging for a country that never had a dearth of spinners. Their young batsmen are adapting to International cricket quicker than previous generations and the old brigade is enjoying success that eluded them for most of their early days in international cricket. The core of the side is about the same age, which should stand them in good stead.
Bangladesh are no longer referred to as minnows. The team, who were earlier considered as the whipping boys of international cricket, have undergone a massive transformation after some solid performances in recent years have seen them catapult from being a bottom rung team to one that is considered worthy of competing against. The Tigers as they are popularly known have come a long way since their debut in the Dhaka Test against India.
The writer is Assistant Editor of The Independent and can be contacted at: syed.mehdi@theindependentbd.com
