Home ›› 29 Sep 2022 ›› Sport
Bangladesh national cricket team won the second Twenty20 International by 32 runs against the UAE at the Dubai International Stadium on Wednesday as the Tigers clinched the two-match series 2-0.
In their attempts to ramp up preparations for the tri-series in New Zealand followed by the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia, Bangladesh Cricket Board arranged the series which should by now have aided Technical consultant Sridharan Sriram to consider ideal combinations going into the World Cup.
Despite the scare in the first match, the Tigers took the second match comfortably.
Tigers management had the opportunity to tinker with the team combination in the second T20I but they decided to remain measured and brought in pacers Taskin Ahmed and Ebadot Hossain for left-armers Mustafizur Rahman and Shoriful Islam.
Soumya Sarker, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Rishad Hossain, and Hasan Mahmud were not tested in the two matches.
While there was the scope of testing out the whole squad, the management to an extent gave an idea of how the team combination might look like in the upcoming tournaments.
Though Shoriful got a chance to play, the fast bowler along with Soumya, and leg-spinner Rishad will be travelling as reserves.
Pacer Hasan Mahmud, who came back from an injury, was left out.
In the batting department, the management can be at a bit more ease as the opening slots- one of the biggest concerns for Bangladesh in this format- seems to have found a solution in Mehidy Hasan Miraz.
The makeshift opener, on Wednesday, scored his career-best of 47 runs off 37 deliveries, hitting five fours in the process as he showed early intent and kept the scorecard ticking.
With his new-found freedom at the top-order, Mehidy’s no-fear attitude will be a plus point as Tigers look to make use of the powerplay.
Bangladesh played out of their skin in the second match, which saw the Tigers make use of the first six, scoring 48-1, and keeping up a run rate in excess of eight in the middle overs.
But they were hard done by their finishing in the death overs. The middle-order scored to churn out 43 runs in the last five, managing only three boundaries in those overs as the Tigers finished the innings at 169-5.
In reply, the UAE batsmen were pinned down early, failing to connect in the first two overs. Taskin and Mohammad Saifuddin built up the pressure, and left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed foxed out opener Chirag Suri. The other opener Muhammad Waseem hit Nasum for two consecutive sixes in the fifth over but fell lbw to Taskin before Mosaddek, in the seventh over, sent back Aryan Lakra and Vriitya Aravind in consecutive deliveries as UAE were reduced to 4-29.
But a resurgence from UAE followed as skipper Chundangapoyil Rizwan and Basil Hameed put together a 90-run stand before Hammed fell for 42 to Ebadot, while Rizwan remained unbeaten on 51.
While most of the bowlers were spot on, the form of Saifuddin might be a concern for Bangladesh as he not only brings a surplus seam option but is also the sixth-bowling option with a supposed death bowling pedigree. The pacer has struggled for form since his return and went for 40 off four overs in the first match, and conceded 26 runs in three overs in the second.
In the spinning department, Nasum has proved to be expensive, while Mosaddek is coming into his own as a proper off-spinning option even in the T20 format.
With preparations under their belt, Bangladesh will travel to New Zealand, where they will take on the hosts and Pakistan in the tri-series ahead of the World Cup.
The Tigers will face Pakistan in the opener on October 7.
