‘No replacements for the time being'

Sarfraz Ahmed, the Pakistan captain, took the blame for his team's poor show at the Asia Cup, but said that there's time to rebuild the team for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

A convincing eight-wicket win over Hong Kong in the tournament opener suggested Pakistan were going to be a force. But it was followed by an eight-wicket defeat to India, and then, following a last-over win over Afghanistan in the Super Fours, losses to India and Bangladesh. As a result, Pakistan crashed out of the tournament they have won twice in the past.

"Yes, our performance was very poor. Our batting wasn't good, and we dropped a lot of catches. Our bowling was also patchy, and that's the reason we are out of the tournament," accepted Ahmed, who had a poor run with the bat himself, scoring 68 runs in four innings.

"I still believe we have a lot of talented players in the team. Look at Fakhar Zaman. Though he didn't have a good tournament, we have to back him. Babar Azam too. Imam has, thankfully, done well, but there's also Shadab and Hasan. We have to back them and take them along with us. We have to look at our bench too. We have a pool of players, and by the time the World Cup comes, we'll have a good team," said Ahmed.

"The World Cup is quite some time away, we have other engagements before that. Australia are coming, and then there's New Zealand. So we have to review our performance and see where we are falling short.

"We are losing too many wickets early, and the middle order has had to deal with the new ball, which isn't easy, and hitting quickly in the end isn't easy on these pitches. We'll have to get together and fix these issues."

While Ahmed called the performance 'alarming', he added, "There's no need to press the panic button. Yes, we have made mistakes as a team, and as a captain, I know that I didn't do well. But no need to panic, we need to back the players, look at the positions and see if there are people outside the team who can come in."

Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto's bizarre review on Day 1 of the second Test against Sri Lanka has left everyone baffled.  

In the 44th over of the day, Sri Lanka batter Kusal Mendis, batting on 29, rushed down the wicket to play dead bat at a good length delivery bowled by Taijul Islam.

Following the successful defence, an appeal was made by Shanto from first slip. The Tigers skipper had thought that the ball hit Mendis's pad first and asked Taijul whether that was the case. But Taijul failed to give an affirmation and wicket-keeper Liton Das too couldn't ascertain Shanto. The stump mic, however, picked up Shanto saying confidently that it was a case of the ball brushing the pad first before thumping onto the bat. 

Shanto decided to challenge umpire Rod Tucker's decision of not out with a review but was left disappointed when replays showed that the ball clearly hit the middle of Mendis's bat. Third umpire Chris Gaffney did not even need to go for an Ultraedge check as the ball was so far away from the front pad.

The Lankans were 155 for the loss of one at that stage after which Mendis went on to score 93 while building a 114-run stand with Dimuth Karunaratne, who eventually scored 86. 

Bangladesh have always struggled with determining which decisions to challenge when it comes to using the DRS system. With only three reviews allowed per inning for each side, the Tigers are yet to wrap their heads around the DRS. Previous captains have also struggled with using reviews and there have been several such baffling challenges in the recent past.

"We are not really good with reviews. That's very clear. So far, we have been awful. We have to develop a much better method. That's completely under captain and wicketkeeper. Maybe the point fielder. The one we are using isn't working. I think we are probably emotions rather than fact at the moment. It was straight off the middle of the bat, so it is not a great review. I also don't want people to be afraid to take reviews. We just have to find a better method," Bangladesh bowling coach Andre Adams said after the day's play in his take of the bizarre review.

Bangladesh bowling coach Andre Adams was not impressed with his side letting opportunities slip through dropped catches on Day 1 of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Chattogram on Saturday.  

The Tigers missed three chances, including two dropped catches, and were made to pay the price as the Lankans ended the first day on top with 314 on the board for the loss of four wickets.

After opting to bat first, Sri Lanka openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Nishan Madushka amassed 96 runs for the first wicket, courtesy of a 57-run knock from the latter.

Both capitalised on reprieves, with Madushka adding 48 runs to his tally after being dropped on nine by Mahmudul Hasan Joy at second slip in the sixth over, while Karunaratne, who was given a life when he was on 22, ended by scoring 86. He would have to thank Shakib Al Hasan for his knock as he fumbled the opportunity over the boundary while fielding at deep fine leg in the 22nd over. Pacer Hasan Mahmud was the bowler on both occasions.

"You will struggle if you drop catches in any game of cricket. Our fielding has been impressive since I joined Bangladesh. Our ground fielding is excellent. There's been some excellent catches," Adams told reporters after the day's play. 

"However, when you drop a catch early, you can pay the price. We have dropped too many catches. We are working on it. Nobody means to drop it. They are doing the work, but they are dropping catches. We have to continue to work on taking catches."

Another chance went begging late in the day when an outside edge off the blade of Angelo Mathews slipped between the wicketkeeper and the fielder at first slip.

This time, it was off-spinner Mehedi Hasan Miraz who was left ruing. 

The tigers also dropped several chances when they suffered a 328-run battering in the first Test against the Lankans in Sylhet.  

"Dropping catches will continue to cost us if we keep doing it. Like the Sylhet Test, there were periods of pressure but not for long enough. For us to compete and be excellent, we need to be excellent for longer," Adams said. 

Debutant Mahmud, who opened the bowling along with Khaled Ahmed, had to wait 55 overs to make his mark on the innings. He dismissed Karunaratne in the second session of the day to pick up his maiden Test scalp before dismissing Mathews nine overs to stumps.

"Hasan was excellent today. He bowled with pretty good control. He is a young bowler. Lots of talent," Adams said.

"I think he has bowled really well. He controlled his line pretty well. His pace was good. He is ready physically. He has to bowl the same throughout the day. The only way to do that is to play at this level. I think he is an exciting bowler. He has got seam movement. He has got swing and pace. Everything you want from a young pace bowler," he added. 

The morning of September 29 must have broken with some harsh light for the Bangladesh cricketers in Dubai and their loyal fans back home. It was much the same on March 23, 2012, when the Asia Cup final against Pakistan was lost in the final ball in Mirpur the night before. But as time wore on in 2012, the pain of defeat gave way to a feeling of accomplishment born from the feeling that Bangladesh cricket had finally broken through and had defeated all but one of their more celebrated neighbours before falling at the final hurdle.

On Friday night, the pain of failure at the final hurdle in the final ball -- this time against India -- haunted the cricketers and cricket lovers once again. Like 2012, this pain too shall pass but there will be a different sense of accomplishment from Asia Cup 2018.

Defeating Sri Lanka in the opener, then Afghanistan and Pakistan in must-win games may sound par for the course for the team fans have come to know since 2012. However, winning two of those matches without talismanic opener Tamim Iqbal and the one against Pakistan without both Tamim and ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan is not something that would have been expected. Making the final in the kind of heat they had never experienced before and doing it with setbacks that would have crippled Bangladesh sides of the past marks a new level.

To accomplish that, young players who were part of the support cast -- Liton Das and Mohammad Mithun -- and those who were leaders in waiting but often seemed to need a helping hand -- Mustafizur Rahman and Mehedi Hasan Miraz -- came to the fore. That, and the tremendous fighting spirit shown by the Tigers throughout the two-week long event -- not least in taking India's chase of 222 down to the final ball on Friday -- will be Bangladesh's biggest takeaway.

"Everyone may think about the 2012 Asia Cup final, but I see it a little differently," Bangladesh opener Tamim had said on September 13, two days before the tournament opener against Sri Lanka in Dubai. "The 2012 Asia Cup was the tournament where we first got the belief that we could beat any team -- that we could be competitive.

"I remember that; not my four fifties or how we lost the final by two runs. I remember how we played as a team and beat teams that no one would have thought we could beat. We beat India and Sri Lanka, and lost two very competitive matches against Pakistan."

Little did Tamim know then that it was his injury two days later, which forced him to fly out of the Asia Cup and back home, that would contribute to this tournament being remembered as the next big step for Bangladesh after 2012.

Since 2012, Bangladesh's graph has trended upward, with occasional dips. But a common feature of that rise has been the people doing the heavy lifting. Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad have been the five cricketers who have worked wonders for Bangladesh cricket over much of the last decade.

But this Asia Cup was a departure from the norm because the Bangladesh team do not often do well with setbacks, especially when they have to fight with those setbacks against oppositions perceived to be superior. That happened in this tournament too -- losing the last group game against Afghanistan and the first Super Four match against India in abject fashion were a function of them struggling to overcome the setbacks of losing Tamim, scheduling confusions and having to play three matches in four days in 40-plus degree heat.

The recovery, and the architects of the recovery, will be the source of inspiration for future campaigns. While it is true that there was magical captaincy from Mashrafe, he still had to rely on opener Imrul Kayes to fly in on Saturday night and score a match-winning fifty against Afghanistan on Sunday from number six, rescuing the side in partnership with Mahmudullah from 87 for five. Faced with non-performing opening pairs, Mashrafe took the wildcard decision to open with number eight batsman Mehedi in the final, but the youngster still had to show the courage to be a part of a 120-run opening stand with a sublime Liton. For his part, Liton was the one who had to repay his captain's continued faith, and he did so with a maiden century in the most important game of the tournament.

Mushfiqur was Bangladesh's best batsman in the tournament with scores of 144 in the opening game and 99 against Pakistan. In both those innings, however, Mithun was an indispensable foil with innings of 63 and 60 in century-plus partnerships that rescued Bangladesh from top-order collapses. 

In each of Bangladesh's three wins in the tournament, someone other than the Big Five stepped up and took responsibility. The bowlers, led by Mashrafe, Mustafizur and Mehedi, were consistent throughout and the spirited fielding was the flag-bearer of the team's never-say-die spirit.

 "The positives depend on the individuals. I think losing to India twice was something that I didn't desire. When Shakib and Tamim are back, the team will do well in the future if we can hold on to this spirit," Mashrafe said after the match.

There will certainly be heartbroken fans who will rue another missed opportunity, another last-ball failure. But this tournament showed that the ingredients long craved for outside the Big Five are very much present and the work in progress is waiting for completion with the return of the two big stalwarts.

The takeaway from this latest heartbreak is that it will just be a matter of time before bittersweet gives way to unadulterated joy.