'Chandika can't score runs'
Halfway through the Tigers' disastrous tour of South Africa, Chandika Hathurusingha tendered his resignation from the post of Bangladesh national team head coach and went on to take up the same position for Sri Lanka.
Hathurusingha may now have a few tips and tricks for his new side on how to handle Bangladesh when the two face off, in their Tri-nation ODI series encounter on January 9, but Tigers' assistant and fielding coach Richard Halsall believes that it is the cricketers and not the coaches who actually get the job done, just as they had in their win against Zimbabwe in the first game of the competition.
While speaking to reporters before a training session at at the Sher-e-Bangla National stadium, Halsall was asked about how the team management feels to have Hathurusingha as an opponent, the Englishman replied: "He is a very good coach, but as you saw last night, it is Tamim Iqbal who scores runs and Shakib Al Hasan who takes wickets. Chandika can't score runs or take wickets."
The 49-year-old also mentioned that though the Sri Lankans are not up the mark in recent times, they still have some experienced players in the side.
"Sri Lanka are a very strong side when they perform at their best. We saw that in the Champions Trophy when they beat India. We know how they can play, but they haven't played like that recently. That doesn't mean they won't play really well in three days time. They have some excellent players like Mathews and Lakmal. They have had a rough year, but they are a good side," Halsall said.
In their first game of the year, it was a clinical effort from Masharfe Bin Mortaza and his troops that outclassed Zimbabwe in all three departments to clinch a comfortable eight-wicket win and according to Halsall, it was a pleasing performance from the team that everyone was proud of.
There were concerns over Mustafizur Rahman as the left-arm seamer seemed to have lost his flow following a surgery on his left shoulder last year.
The 22-year-old even injured his ankle later in South Africa but finally made a fantastic comeback to the side against Zimbabwe last Sunday by using his devastating cutters to great effect and picking up two wickets for just 29 runs from his ten overs.
"If you look at elite baseball, lots of their pitchers have a similar injury. Pitchers throw at 90 mph, but it takes them two years to throw at 90mph. I think it's been 18 months since Mustafiz's injury. He bowled the cutters and his pace is creeping back up to 85mph. His cutter is brilliant as ever. His top-end is going up a mile an hour every week. It makes the cutter more effective. His confidence is coming back. What is great is to see how hard he is working. He is constantly working at his skills. To see someone who is in love with his skill and passion, it is fantastic to see. We are used to seeing Tamim and Mushfiq in the nets, but to see a bowler behaving as he does in every training session is very encouraging," Halsall added.
Halsall also reserved praise for Rubel Hossain's role as third seamer, which gave the team management cover over a few scenarios of the game.
Asked whether the Tigers will opt for more spin after their success in the first ODI, with two spinners and three seamers in the team, Halsall said that Bangladesh are blessed at the moment and could go in a different direction to strike a proper balance.