Tigers need Shakib to make his experience count
Marginal calls, full tosses not being put away or the general inconsistency of Bangladesh top-order were all cause for concern in Bangladesh's loss to South Africa in New York in a hard-fought contest on Monday. But the situation would not have gotten so desperate had Bangladesh's key player Shakib Al Hasan left a mark on the game coming in at number four in what was another crucial T20 World Cup game for the Tigers.
Shakib's stay at the crease lasted just four deliveries before he was holed out at mid-wicket, unable to connect a pull shot against Anrich Nortje. Shakib's soft dismissal saw South Africa back in the hunt.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Naturally, following the game there was scathing criticism regarding Shakib's performances.
Shakib's last fifty in the format came before the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, during the tri-nation series in New Zealand also involving Pakistan. He has not enjoyed the best of circumstances leading up to this edition. Bar a match-winning bowling performance against Zimbabwe recently, his all-around performances against both Zimbabwe and then in the three-match T20I series against USA in Texas have been missing.
His troubles with the bat have been evident in the two World Cup matches so far. If it was expected that he would take control of the South Africa game, Shakib failed to live up to expectations. Now if Bangladesh are to advance to the next round and trouble opponents in the Super Eight, Shakib's contribution would be crucial.
"If he wants to play in front of Towhid Hridoy in the middle order, he has to play with a cooler head and take responsibility. We can see that these are not 200-run wickets, so it becomes easier for an experienced player like Shakib," his mentor Nazmul Abedeen Fahim told The Daily Star.
"If he can control the game, it will be better for everyone since the top-order is not doing well. Of course, you can't match expectations all the time, but you have to do it on and off," added the veteran coach and analyst.
Shakib's bowling has perhaps been a bigger concern. He was Bangladesh's most expensive bowler against Sri Lanka and bowled just one over against the Proteas, the first time in his career that it happened. It also upsets Bangladesh's bowling plan, especially with spin likely to be decisive in the West Indies.
"He has a very important role because there are only two specialist spinners in the side. He has to bowl in Powerplay and if he can't fulfil that, Bangladesh's bowling strategy suffers. At times it's important for spinners to bowl in Powerplay and then also key in middle overs. If he can't bowl, we have to go to Mahmudullah but you can't always expect him to perform even as he [Mahmudullah] did excellently against South Africa," Fahim said about Shakib's bowling.
Shakib now has a chance to make it count on surfaces offered in West Indies and gain momentum against lower-ranked opponents in Netherlands and Nepal.
Fahim expects Shakib -- the leading wicket-taker in the tournament's history but is yet to get a wicket in this edition -- to get more turn.
"Given the immediate oppositions [Netherlands], it should make him comfortable. I am hoping he would do better there since you can't just perform badly all of a sudden. There should not be this drop," he added.
Even as Bangladesh could cover for Shakib with the ball, the top-order troubles mean Shakib -- possessing a wealth of experience in the competition as the only two players alongside India's Rohit Sharma to have played in all editions -- will have to make his experience count and shelter the rest.
Comments