'Batters hold the key'

The last few days saw various members of Bangladesh's team management divulge their predictions regarding the Fatullah Test. Prior to Tuesday, most of the players and even the coaching staff went on air stating that a draw would definitely be a good result.

Yesterday, head coach Chandika Hathurusingha went one step ahead and stated that the Tigers were hunting for nothing less than a win. It was a more aggressive statement compared to the ones made by the likes of Heath Streak, Shakib Al Hasan, Imrul Kayes or a couple of other senior players.

What mattered most though were the words spoken by the skipper Mushfiqur Rahim at Fatullah yesterday, for it is the captain's statement that the entire team is expected to follow.

That's what happened during the Pakistan series. The bold and positive statements made by Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan, both of whom believed that the Tigers could win the series, eventually seemed to have an impact on the team.

While Mushfiqur's statements aren't as direct or dominant as Shakib or Mashrafe's -- in fact he often tends to contradict himself in press conferences -- his words yesterday seemed to have reflected the general school of thought with which Bangladesh are entering the lone Test.

Forget the draws and the wins; Mushfiqur's main aim is to have as many good Test sessions as possible in the next five days.

"We have often been guilty of giving away matches after playing just one or two sessions. This needs to change. We need to try and win those little battles. India is a very strong team and by playing against them we will know where we truly stand in Test cricket," Mushfiqur said during the pre-match press conference yesterday.

There were the usual phrases -- the 'ifs', 'buts' and 'at the same time' -- but the bottom line was clear. According to Mushfiqur, for the hosts to make a match out of this contest, they need their batting to click. It was a record stand between Tamim Iqbal and Imrul for the opening wicket that turned the game around for Bangladesh against Pakistan in the first Test in the Tigers' last Test series and the captain hopes his batters can produce similar results.

"The main duty will depend on the batsmen. India have good spinners and it will be a challenge for them, but our batsmen are in good form. I think the first two days will be really good for batting and we will try to utilise that as much as possible," said Mushfiqur.

While the skipper initially tried to match the coach's opinion on Bangladesh's target for the match, he backed out a minute later.

"Our target is what the coach said… we will have to work hard and we will play to win. But it depends on the situation of the match… hopefully we can draw the game. We have good spinners and they can take 20 wickets," he said.

Can Mushfiqur's cautious approach outshine Virat Kohli's aggression? The fans from Narayanganj, who will witness their first Test in nine years in their own backyard, will certainly hope so.