Dhaka: The Bangladesh team management has identified death over bowling as a crucial area for improvement as they prepare for the T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in India and Sri Lanka early next year. Captain Liton Das emphasized the need for bowlers to focus extensively on this aspect to boost their chances of performing well in the prestigious tournament.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Liton Das highlighted that while the team has been effective with the new ball, their performance during the death overs remains a concern. He made these remarks while assessing their recent performance against Pakistan. The Bangladesh team secured a 2-1 series victory against Pakistan, marking consecutive series wins in this format. Just a week prior, they achieved a similar 2-1 series victory against Sri Lanka on foreign soil, recording their first-ever wins in this format against these two top cricketing nations. Before these victories, Bangladesh had a challenging period, losing six series in a row.
While acknowledging previous batting issues, Liton emphasized the pivotal role of the bowlers in securing victories. "It's the bowlers who eventually won the game," he stated, adding that although batting remains essential, the bowlers have a more significant impact on match outcomes.
In modern cricket, teams capitalize on two phases of innings to pressure opponents by scoring heavily. The first six overs, known as the first powerplay, offers batters a chance to exploit fielding restrictions. Similarly, the last five overs, or the death overs, involve similar restrictions, prompting aggressive play. Bangladesh has a recognized death over specialist in Mustafizur Rahman, but they lack other bowlers with a similar reputation.
In the third T20 against Pakistan, Bangladesh opted to rest Mustafizur to assess other bowlers' death over capabilities. The team management, however, expressed dissatisfaction with the outcome. "We all know how deadly Mustafizur can be in the death overs, but for the others, this is the time to improve in this area ahead of the World Cup," Liton stated, emphasizing the need to develop another death over specialist to enhance their match-winning prospects.
Liton also mentioned plans to rotate bowlers, especially pacers, to prevent injuries before the World Cup. He cited Taskin Ahmed's return to T20s after a long break, acknowledging the increased injury risk with continuous play. Shoriful Islam's recurring groin injuries were also noted during the Pakistan series and subsequent matches in Kandy and Dambulla.
Despite inconsistencies among middle-order batters, Liton expressed confidence in them and assured that backup players are ready in case of injuries. He specifically praised Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, and Shamim Pawary as Bangladesh's top middle-order batters.
The Pakistan series concluded a 40-day stretch of continuous cricket for Bangladesh. The team will now take a well-deserved break before regrouping for an Asia Cup preparation camp.