Time for Tigers to be bold
Following a 44-run defeat (via DLS) in a rain-curtailed first ODI, Bangladesh will be eyeing to come up with a different approach and must look to form a well-balanced playing eleven in order to save the series when they take on New Zealand in the second ODI of the three-match series at Saxton Oval in Nelson on Wednesday.
The idea of having four specialist bowlers in the line-up to make room for an extra batter to strengthen the batting unit backfired badly for the Tigers in the first game as Soumya Sarkar, making a comeback to the side after being sidelined for the World Cup, was unable to live up to expectations as the fifth bowling option.
Soumya was backed by the selectors for his ability to chip in with a few overs with his medium pace but the 30-year-old all-rounder's bowling skills barely merit him a place as a reliable bowling option in an ODI.
Soumya, who bowled the full quota of six overs in a 30-overs-a-side contest in the first match, went on to concede 63 runs with the New Zealand batters not taking much time to realise and exploit the weakest link in the Bangladesh bowling unit.
"Is he considered for this role in the domestic circuit as well?" prominent coach Nazmul Abedeen Fahim was also sceptical of the idea of having Soumya as the fifth bowling option. "Soumya definitely got the skills but we also need to consider the fact that whether he can utilise that at the moment. I feel he can still be the sixth bowling option and can bowl a few overs in the middle. We need to think whether it is justified to make him bowl the full quota."
Even though the final rain interruption in the first ODI had forced Bangladesh to adjust their bowling plan -- the Tigers had already had their lead pacers bowl most of their overs which forced them to rely on Soumya in the final phase of the game -- not having a genuine fifth bowler only reflected the team management's poor judgment call and their lack of faith in the batting unit's capability.
Skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto being forced to hand the ball over to Soumya in the death overs meant the hosts, who were two down after a brilliant opening over by Shoriful Islam, had a chance to up the ante and finish with a huge total of 239 for seven, courtesy of a Will Young ton and Tom Latham's 92.
Bangladesh are surely missing the services of injured regular skipper Shakib Al Hasan in both the batting and bowling departments and as it always happens in the absence of the champion all-rounder, the Tigers' think tank is having to deal with a dilemma when it comes to forming a balanced eleven.
With the likes of uncapped leg spinner Rishad Hossain, left-arm spinner Rakibul Hasan, and pacer Tanzim Hasan Sakib in the squad as bowling options, it will be important for coach Chandika Hathurusingha and the team management to shed their defensive approach and relay a positive mindset with the team selection for the upcoming game.
"It's important to put more emphasis on the outcome rather than relying on the names or experience. We did not have bowlers who could bowl fifty overs in the first ODI. For instance, if there is someone more capable than Shakib [for any game] then you must pick him. But we are yet to think that way," Fahim added, hinting that the Tigers are yet to show boldness in their thought process.
Maybe it is time for a fresh approach from the Tigers, especially after the recent World Cup debacle.