‘India players are human beings too and can make mistakes’ – Tigers sniff Asia Cup opportunity

Bangladesh batter Mushfiqur Rahim left the nets after suffering a blow on his hand while batting in a training session at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Sunday. 

Msuhfiqur was facing throw-downs at the nets when a short ball rose sharply to surprise the right-handed batter. He went down in pain and eventually came back up feeling the after-effects of the blow. The team physician came rushing in to check on Mushfiqur and applied ice on his hand after which he returned to the nets again.

However, after facing a couple of balls, Mushfiqur felt discomfort in the injured hand which cut his practice short. 

The medical team couldn't give an instant update. The extent of his blow will be determined after a phase of observation. 

The 36-year-old has scored 171 runs, hitting two fifties, in the seven matches he has played in the ongoing ICC World Cup.   
Bangladesh will take on Sri Lanka in Delhi tomorrow. 

When Shakib Al Hasan came to the crease yesterday in the fourth over, the top-order was once again struggling; this time at 15 for two. Shakib may not have found the hundred he would have been desperate to get, but during a crucial 101-run stand with Tawhid Hridoy, he batted to a plan to bring much-needed respite for Bangladesh in their Asia Cup Super Four fixture against India in Colombo.

After missing out on a single, the stump mic caught him telling Hridoy, "You know how much further we have to go?" It was a reminder of the task ahead. And as the only veteran in the playing eleven, it was much needed.

Judging from his remarks before the game, he was acutely asking his players to take up their end of the bargain. He demonstrated how he does his bit. "Here experience or inexperience or new and old doesn't come into the equation," he had said. It was the scenario the Tigers' veterans and youngsters have to play if the team are to find rhythm at the upcoming World Cup.

With Anamul Haque Bijoy once again failing to impress and Mehedi Miraz departing soon after, the Tigers' batting recovery hinged on Shakib and Hridoy's partnership.

Shakib, was comfortable in shot-making from the onset but impatience was showing as well. He had to gradually settle down with wickets falling around him. It had been 36 innings since his last ODI ton; in fact, he has not reached three figures in any format since his blistering 124 not out against the Windies at the 2019 World Cup.

But as he has shown many times, he often does not worry about the numbers as long as he is contributing. He has scored fifty 11 times, crossing 90 twice since that ton against Windies. The unbeaten 96 against Zimbabwe was the closest he got to a hundred since then.

When he came on, it felt like he needed some luck on his side to play a bigger innings. He had got going against Pakistan in this Asia Cup too, but did not make enough to really make an impact. This time against India, despite it being a dead rubber, Shakib needed some confidence to carry to the World Cup. It is after all, his individual responsibility to shine with the bat at the World Cup.

That rub of the green came in the 19th over, when off-spinner Tilak Varma troubled him and got the outside edge but only for KL Rahul to drop a difficult chance behind the stumps.

Shakib would then get the wake-up call. With the spinners introduced, he found negotiating Varma difficult. But when India wanted to squeeze the run-rate, Shakib had finally found his preferred matchups in Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja.

While risks could not assure favourable results with a lot of rebuilding to do, Shakib and Hridoy were calculative. Thus, Hridoy went after Varma, the right-arm off-spinner, hitting two sixes in the 23rd over. Shakib picked the cue for acceleration and hit Patel for two through mid-wicket.

As spinners were trying to go through their overs fast, Shakib faced 20 deliveries from Patel, hitting 27 runs and picking 22 from the 17 deliveries he faced against Jadeja. Hridoy had taken Verma for 15 off the nine he faced against his favourable matchup.

When it looked assured that Shakib would convert the 80 to a ton, he fell to a careless shot, at a time the team needed a bigger contribution from him. Hridoy's fifty would ensure at least 200 on the board before Nasum Ahmed and Mahedi Hasan finished well.

Despite the lacklustre state of the batting department, some nuance shown by the skipper and others after yet another top-order struggle should set the Tigers on a better plan for their batting department.

Bangladesh ODI skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza was in one of his usual nonchalant moods when he arrived for a press conference yesterday to field questions regarding the team's upcoming tour of Sri Lanka. It was the last day of training for the players with the team set to board a flight for Sri Lanka today and when the day began, no one would have predicted the grim turn of events that came after the press conference as the ODI skipper was ruled out of the Sri Lanka series following an injury he suffered during a net bowling session.

The Bangladesh players were undergoing a relaxed training session when Mashrafe walked into the press conference with the likes of Tamim Iqbal, Mustafizur Rahman and Co. engrossed in a keepie-uppie session.

There were questions about Mashrafe's fitness throughout the World Cup and it was only natural that he had to field questions about his fitness from the beginning of the press conference.

"I have practiced for two days now without any problems. I am hoping that everything is well," Mashrafe reiterated.

He answered questions about his retirement plans and the team's focus and planning for the upcoming series in Sri Lanka, slated to begin from July 26. The skipper undertook those questions with his natural charisma while maintaining that he had the focus to bounce back after dismal World Cup performances.

It was in the evening following the press conference that news began to surface that Mashrafe had suffered an injury during a net session. He had niggling injuries even prior to the World Cup but it did not affect his ability to play for the Tigers. During the net session, he pulled a hamstring -- an injury that is familiar to the speedster -- and was subsequently ruled out of the Sri Lanka series.

Later Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief selector Minhajul Abedin confirmed that all-rounder Forhad Reza, who was in Chattogram participating in a one-day series against the Afghanistan A team, was included in the 14-member squad as Mashrafe's replacement.

"He pulled his hamstring during training today. We are yet to receive the medical report but at the moment it looks difficult for him to play in the series. We have decided to include Forhad Reza as his replacement," chief selector Minhajul Abedin told The Daily Star yesterday.

A BCB media release later confirmed that Mashrafe sustained a Grade-1 injury.

"He received an immediate MSK ultrasound examination which revealed a Grade-1 injury. It is a recurring injury that could take around three to four weeks to recover. Therefore, he was ruled out from participation in sporting activities for a month," BCB chief physician Debashish Chowdhury was quoted as saying in the BCB release.

Later yesterday, the management decided that Tamim Iqbal would captain the side for the tour. With Shakib Al Hasan allowed a break for the tour's duration, the loss of the skipper will come as a big blow for the Tigers. Since becoming Bangladesh captain back in 2014, this is the first series he will miss through injury. To make matters worse, late yesterday, Mohammad Saifuddin was also ruled out with a lower back injury with fast bowler Taskin Ahmed replacing him in the squad.