Stability heading into World Cup
Stability was the buzz word for Bangladesh T20I captain Mahmudullah Riyad during his press conference on the eve of the series opener against Zimbabwe, slated to commence today.
With just seven months to go before the T20I World Cup in Australia, Mahmudullah said it was the right time to work out the steps to improve performances in the game's shortest format and do so by instilling belief through his captaincy and also the processes of team management and selection.
The Bangladesh batting order has been marked by a top-heavy line-up in their most recent 2-0 T20I series in Pakistan. The likes of Soumya Sarkar and Mohammad Mithun were coming in at number six and seven and the acceleration needed in the middle overs was missing. The return of Mushfiqur Rahim and Mohammad Saifuddin gave Mahmudullah just cause to state that stability would be there while Liton Das and Tamim Iqbal's current form mean the Tigers can go in with more belief in the top-order.
Even in the T20I series in India recently, chopping and changing of the batting order saw Mushfiqur Rahim batting at five and it did not work in the do-or-die third T20I as Tigers lost the series 2-1. Mahmudullah reiterated that he made himself clear on the strategies the team would use.
"I have discussed strategies with the coach. I am quite clear on what I want and what the coach wants. I am hoping that those who play, will play according to their position. With the return of Saifuddin, our situation is better than before," he said.
A conservative approach and lack of intent from batsmen has been a problem in T20s. Mahmudullah wanted to instill faith in his players through his captaincy and use the right support from team management to get past that issue. "I want to ensure a stable batting order so that players can have the freedom to perform. Wherever they bat, they have to perform in their designated role," he said.
He wanted to draw inspiration from former ODI captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, who was replaced by Tamim Iqbal yesterday. "He had a certain charisma and could make us feel less nervous and also think of solutions we could implement. I will try to do that and take the team through the next step," he said.
He said that while new players would be given opportunities, he wanted management to consider the roles particular players were playing when thinking of shuffling the lineup. "When batting at six or seven, a batsman may get out first ball in T20s and team management need to support them," he said about making the lineups less topsy-turvy heading into the World Cup.
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