Australia’s snubs ‘disappointing’

Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan broke the jinx with the ball when he picked up two wickets in consecutive deliveries to seal the game for his side against Nepal in St. Vincent on Monday after going wicketless in the Tigers' first three matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup.

The 37-year-old came to bowl the last over of the match against Nepal, who needed 22 to win off the last six balls. Nepal had two wickets in hand and Shakib scalped both in his first two balls to seal the victory and end his unexpected drought.

The left-arm spinner will be on a hattrick whenever he comes into bowl against Australia and could become the seventh bowler to achieve the feat in T20 World Cups.

Shakib, who is the only player alongside India's Rohit Sharma to have played all editions of the event since its inception in 2007, is also one wicket away from becoming the first player to take 50 scalps in T20 World Cups. He started the tournament on 47 wickets and took four matches to add two more to his tally. Furthermore, he is two scalps away from becoming only the second player after Tim Southee (164) to reach 150 wickets in the format.

With 2532 runs in the format, if Shakib can reach the 150-wicket mark, he will be the first to take 150 scalps and score 2500 runs in T20Is.

Australia captain Aaron Finch is relishing a "blockbuster" Cricket World Cup semi-final against England at Edgbaston on Thursday but injury concerns threaten to derail the plans of the defending champions.

Finch's side slipped to a 10-run defeat to already-eliminated South Africa in their final round-robin fixture at Old Trafford on Saturday, a result that saw them knocked off top spot in the table.

It means they now face the host nation in the semi-finals, while India will take on a New Zealand side that has stumbled into the knockout stages with some indifferent performances.

Australia had already lost Shaun Marsh for the remainder of the World Cup prior and now look likely to be without another top order batsman in Usman Khawaja after he suffered a hamstring injury while batting.

All-rounder Marcus Stoinis needed treatment for a back issue and will also undergo scans on Sunday, while fast bowler Mitchell Starc had an off-day with the ball and did not appear to be moving too freely either.

"It doesn't look ideal for Usman Khawaja at the moment, but we will have to wait and see," Finch told reporters in the wake of the South Africa loss.

"He will have a scan in the morning and then we will make a call based on what the results are.

"(With Stoinis) we are not sure ... at the moment he feels okay, but until you get the definitive scans, it is tough to know."

The selectors have already brought batsman Peter Handscomb into the squad following the loss of Marsh, who was originally included in the squad as cover for Khawaja.

Fortunately the Australia A side is also on tour in England with Matt Wade, a veteran of 94 international one-dayers, in fine form with the bat.

"If they need to be replaced, which I should imagine Usman will, there are plenty of guys who have been playing some good one-day cricket," Finch said.

There is no doubt that Australia would have preferred a semi-final against New Zealand, leaving title rivals England and India to battle it out for a final spot, but they must now take on the hosts at one of their favourite venues.

"It's going to be a blockbuster, it doesn't get much bigger than Australia-England in a World Cup semi-final," Finch said.

"Edgbaston is a beautiful ground to play at and the fans are always entertaining down there. It's going to be a great atmosphere." 

A significant mismatch on paper was the theme for Bangladesh ahead of their T20 World Cup Super 8 fixture against Australia in St. Lucia on Friday and the Tigers could do very little to overturn the notion with their on-field display. 

A lacklustre attitude, particularly with the bat, saw Bangladesh succumb to a 28-run defeat in DLS method against the 2021-winners but more than the result itself, it was the manner in which the Tigers approached the game that left the fans raising a toast to disappointment.

It won't be a stretch to presume that even the most ardent of fans would humbly expect to see Bangladesh produce fighting displays and moments of courage and go toe-to-toe against the top sides in the Super 8s more than they would perhaps anticipate a positive result. But against the mighty Aussies, there was hardly any attitude shown that would suggest that the Tigers came to the ground looking for a fight.

Bangladesh gave their opposition all and maybe more respect than they were looking to get and it seemed like this particular group of Tigers was rather intimidated by the Kangaroos, so much so it induced a mental barrier because of which they forgot to prowl let alone go for the kill.

Fear loomed large and the idea of fighting a lost battle encapsulated the Tigers' camp, especially on the batting front. On a good wicket, the Tigers laboured hard but only managed a paltry 140-8 and in reply, Australia raced off to 100-2 in 11.2 overs before rain prompted umpires to call for a result via the DLS method. Batting first, no batter other than Towhid Hridoy, who scored a 28-ball 40, looked to make a game out of the difficult situation Liton Das's 25-ball 16 had put the Tigers in and at no point could one say that the Aussies were forced to break a sweat or resort to any defensive measure.

The proactive body language and the attitude of hunting down oppositions for the desired victory -- features that were evident in the lead-up to the Super 8s -- were lacking. The Tigers seemed to have used up all their aggression in making their way to the Super 8s and suffered from stage fright when they were due to take the big stage.

Bangladesh's performance was a prime example of what head coach Chandika Hathurusingha had said about the Super 8s being a bonus for the Tigers, underlining that the objective of qualifying for the second round had already been achieved.

"We're very happy to be here. And then anything from here for us is a bonus. So, we play with a lot of freedom. And we are going to challenge all three teams the best we can," Hathrusingha told reporters on Friday.

"This game, why do we start playing this game? To enjoy. That fact of enjoyment, we don't take it away from the players. How big is the game? That doesn't mean that they have a free license to go and do whatever they want. So, the enjoyment factor is always at the forefront, but they have to do their role for the team," he added.

Ironically, none of what Hathurusingha said had found a reflection in Bangladesh's performances. Most of his troops couldn't play with an ounce of freedom nor could they execute their roles.

Even the thunderous bowling that helped the Tigers win three matches in the group-stage looked blunt. Starman Shakib Al Hasan continued to avoid bowling to left-handers as he did not bowl an over in the match. Meanwhile, vice-captain and lead pacer Taskin Ahmed's perennial habit of getting cold feet in ICC events has returned as his early tournament sizzle has all but worn off in the past two games. With in-form pacer Shoriful Islam, who is yet to feature in the tournament, raring to go, will the team management take a bold decision in this regard?

Two days into Australia, the national football team's booters are still battling to adjust to the chilly temperature in Melbourne, but they expect to acclimate before the match against Australia on Thursday.

Following their arduous 20-hour flight from Dhaka to Melbourne, the charges of Spanish coach Jaiver Cabrera went through a recovery session at the team hotel before conducting their first training session with the ball yesterday at the Yarraville Glory Football Club site in Victoria.

Despite the frigid and windy conditions, the men in red and green focused on technical and tactical areas to tackle the FIFA-ranked 27th side, who faced Ecuador, Argentina, Mexico, and England this year.

"It has overall been quite good preparation on the first day of the training. The weather has been cold compared to Bangladesh's and that's why we are facing a bit of a problem. However, the coach wants us to adjust with the weather quickly, then it will help us play the match against Australia," winger Mohammad Ibrahim said in a video message sent by Bangladesh Football Federation.

Ibrahim added, "Can't deny that they [Australia] are one of best teams in the world, so our job is to spoil their attack as much as possible, and today [Monday] we practiced how to form the defensive blocks against them."

Captain Jamal Bhuiya also revealed that his teammates are struggling with the chilly conditions, but he feels that everyone will be ready for the match against Australia.

"It was great that the entire team had the first practice in Melbourne after only two days. It's cold here, and everyone felt it except me and Tareq, who are used to it," Jamal said.

"I believe everyone would adopt within one or two days as we have to play at 8 pm. Everyone is confident and concentrating hundred percent on the match."