Afif poses questions again

Afif Hossain is raising his status as Bangladesh’s new crisis-man as the left-handed batsmen once again rescued the team with his knock of 85 runs from 81 deliveries.

The 22-year-old hit six fours and two sixes, ensuring the team got to a total that did not abandon all hope.

And that has raised the question again of whether the Bangladesh team management is wasting him batting at number seven and after Mahmudullah Riyad.

Afif came into the crease in the 25th over and after his first 10 balls, his strike rate never went below 70, and ended with more runs than balls.

Despite Mehidy Hasan Miraz going back in the 42nd over, Afif stayed unbeaten till the end to take the team to 256-9. In the last eight overs, Taijul Islam, Hasan Mahmud, and Mustafizur Rahman played 22 balls to score just five. Afif played the remaining 26 and scored 39.

This is not the first time Afif has been the team’s leading batsman during troubled times. Earlier this year, Bangladesh were 45-6 chasing 216 against Afghanistan. From there, Afif scored 93 runs off 115 deliveries and put together an unbeaten 174-run stand with Mehidy Hasan Miraz to clinch the win.

During the tour of South Africa, Afif scored 72 as Bangladesh managed only 194-9, with the second-highest score being 38.

For years, Mahmudullah has been Bangladesh’s aid during their ailment. But in recent times, his batting form seemingly has only gone downwards. In 2022, only twice has he finished his innings with a strike rate above 100, and in neither did he play more than 20 balls.

His highest strike rate in an innings where he played more than 20 balls is 95, which came during the second ODI of the series. In that innings, he covered up late but at one point was on 27 off 50 balls.

In the third ODI, while Anamul Haque was playing at a strike rate over 100 and Afif with a healthy one, Mahmudullah played 69 deliveries to score 39 runs, including 42 dot balls.

And with the contrasting performances from the batsmen, it might be time for the team management to rethink Afif’s batting position, especially with the World Cup on the horizon.