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| Shakib Al Hasan leads Bangladesh from the front with both batting and bowling, but needs some help. |
Bangladesh aren’t blessed with great batsman. Pakistan have made the
most of that. Spin friendly Bangladesh wickets are good to bat on once you ‘get
in’, and get used to the (lack of) pace and spin. In the first test, The Tigers
got bowled out for 135 in 52 overs. In response, Pakistan batted for 176 overs,
and made 5/594. I doubt you can make the excuse for Bangladesh, that the wicket
had some juice in it for the opening bowlers. It doesn’t work like that over
there... The 2nd Test starts on Saturday, and there is
lots of work to be done for the hosts, before the cries for them to be culled
as a Test nation will grow bigger by the day, Phil Hughes style. (code red)
Credit where credit is due. Mohammed Hafeez, the ageless Younis Khan and
Asad Shafiq, who made his maiden Test century, batted very well. But to be
honest, the wicket was very true, and 61 isn’t a bad score usually, but opener
Taufeeq Umar can be classified to have ‘missed out’ in that first dig.
Bangladesh was slightly better batting again, but making 75 runs more than
Younis made in one innings, but on a pitch that hadn’t changed that much was a
disappointment. So what can they do to turn it round?
If Bangladesh win the toss, they bat- tell themselves to bat long
periods. They need someone to anchor their innings. Former captain and Mr
Underrated in the cricket world, Shakib Al Hassan, and new skipper and keeper,
Mushfiqur Rahim are two guys who can do that. But they bat at 5 and 6
respectively, too low for someone to ‘bat with them’. 26 year old debutant
Nazimuddin batted with a strike rate of below 45 in both knocks in the 1st test, and made 109 runs in the match, showed he’s one to persist with.
The middle order is a problem. These are the guys who will face spin most of
the innings. The fact that from positions 3-7, Bangladesh made 113 runs over
both innings, and only two wickets fell to seamers, speaks volumes.
Pakistan are coming off a series against Sri Lanka, in which their
bowlers were taken to the sword by Kumar Sangakarra. The standouts then were
left arm spinner Abdur Rehman, and offie Saeed Ajmal, who were again in the 1st test, and will be a threat again. Both bowl very well in tandem, and Ajmal
has terrific changes of pace and a killer doosra.
In the deciding test, Bangladesh will need their heads down and bottoms
up, or the calls to scrap them as a Test nation will grow bigger. Phil Hughes,
eat your heart out.
The Globe Trotter.
I actually think that Bangladesh need to continue on with playing tests to gain experience to produce players to the level of Shakib Al Hasan. Obviously I think they will evidently be flogged again, but players from Bangladesh have shined like Mohammad Arashful over the past and eventually they will reach the level of competition expected by the world.
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