Gazi Ashraf Hossain, the recently appointed chief selector for Bangladesh, remarked that the team’s shortcomings were made clear to him during the humiliating Test series loss to Sri Lanka. Bangladesh abandoned the slow, low surfaces that have historically helped them succeed. This move was disastrous as their pacers, who took 37 wickets in the two Test matches, produced an outstanding performance that allowed the visitors to easily defeat Bangladesh.
“We didn’t fare well in the Test [series]. Although we [hoped] that our squad would do better, it is not a fact that the outcome had to go our way,” Ashraf told reporters on Friday (April 5) at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
Because we had to play a lot of Tests overseas, we wanted to play on sporting wickets. We had gone for such kind of wickets because we wanted to assess our strengths and weaknesses. That’s probably why we’re dissatisfied, as our team management will undoubtedly address the areas where we fell short in the next several days.
“Our exit strategy wasn’t the best. They left before settling in, and they wouldn’t have been out attempting to pursue those deliveries if they had known where their off-stump was, according to Ashraf.
Some were discovered trying to hit the opening ball of the game, and they lacked the temperament to bat like Test players. The bowlers kept generating angles to trick us. This has happened in previous series as well. It seems like a recurrence to me. This is something that needs to be taken seriously. We ought to seal the gaps that were made. The appropriate actions must be taken by those accountable for this, he continued.
When compared to previous years, Ashraf acknowledged that there wasn’t as much lead-in time for preparation leading up to a Test series, but he also mentioned that the current calendar’s time limits meant they didn’t have much to do in this area. Captain Najmul Hossain advocated for longer preparation for Test specialists prior to a series, while batsman Mominul Haque maintained that the nation’s first class system was completely unrelated to Test cricket.
“First-class cricket was mentioned by the players, and preparation was also discussed. Unlike in the past, you can see from the calendar that there isn’t enough time for preparation right now. After they return from the World Cup, I believe there will be some recuperation time before the Pakistan series. Our hitters know how to fix the pain zone, therefore the coaches will also be working on the places they identified as weak points,” he stated.
“If a cricketer can play 8-10 first-class matches in a particular season, keeping one-day, T20 and other games aside, it is not that bad because you also have to also take workload into consideration,” he stated.
