Selectors hail competitive DPL
“This league has a different vibe,” was how Bangladesh chief selector Faruque Ahmed summed up the performance of the ongoing Dhaka Premier League.
“See, the cricketers so far have been playing the league under extreme heat but interestingly no one was complaining because everybody is enjoying the league,” was the observation from Habibul Bashar, another selector.
The competitiveness, quality of play, impressive performances from national players, especially those who needed to get back their rhythm and the opportunities the pace bowlers have been getting impressed the selectors. They also opined that by watching the matches the national team's foreign staff, who are now on vacation, could be benefited.
“We are really spending a good time with the way the league has been played so far. Not only their availability, but also the performance of the national players added real spice. We always say that domestic cricket helps the country's premier players to rectify their small problems which one cannot always do during international assignments. And we are seeing the example of this in the ongoing league,” said Faruque.
Seasoned campaigners, some young players and most importantly national players like Mushfiqur Rahim and Sabbir Rahman have been ruling with the bat while on the bowling side it is nice to see Abahani skipper Tamim Iqbal keeping confidence on leg-spinner Jubair Hossain, who now tops the bowling charts with 12 scalps.
“It is difficult to expect grassy tracks under such scorching heat and humid conditions, so it's nice to see the placid batting tracks where the batsmen have been trying to cash in to the hilt. So far the national players' performance is good but I am looking forward to seeing more from them as well as the young players, especially those who played in the Bangladesh Under-19 team,” said Faruque.
Bashar echoed the sentiment regarding the pitches. “I am happy with the pitches because you cannot expect anything better in this condition than what has provided. I am also enjoying this league because of the competitiveness in every match.
“The pace bowlers are getting enough opportunities which have impressed me most. It was nice to see that the teams are not fully relying on the slow bowlers. The pace bowlers also got the chance to operate with the old ball. Actually, so far you can take a lot of positives from this league,” opined Bashar.
“The competitiveness is high as even for the national stars it's not an easy task out in the middle; they needed to work hard. This league gave me the impression that the level and quality of competition has also increased on the domestic scene,” he added.
Bashar was happy with the national player's performance but said: “It could have been better had Mominul (Haque) made some big scores. Let us see what he does in the coming games. Imrul (Kayes) has also failed to convert his starts into big ones.”
Bashar was also happy as Jubair has been playing regularly for his side. “He (Jubair Hossain) has problems with the full toss and short deliveries. You can only improve his bowling playing out in the middle, not by practising in the nets. You take a risk when you field a leg-spinner and it's good that his captain so far has kept faith in him.”
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