Tigers' match against Sri Lanka abandoned due to rain

Bangladesh reinforced an unwanted record in Tests when they were bundled out for 178 on Day 3 in the second innings of the final Test against Sri Lanka in Chattogram on Monday. 

The dismal effort saw the Tigers extend their tally of getting bundled out below 200 to 102 in 276 innings; a percentage of 36. 96 which is the highest amongst teams to have played more than 10 Tests. Only Afghanistan (50%) and Ireland (37.5%) have a higher percentage in this regard but both are yet to play 10 matches in the format.

Zimbabwe comes in second with a percentage of 31.56 as they posted under 200 totals 71 times in 225 innings.

Bangladesh's batting department has blown hot and cold in recent encounters, particularly against oppositions that have been higher in quality than the Tigers. This was their fifth successive under-200 total and left the hosts staring at another likely defeat.  
 

Following a barrage of criticism, Bangladesh's star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan finally delivered with the bat against the Netherlands in their crucial Group D game of the ongoing T20 World Cup at the Arnos Vale Ground in Kingstown on Thursday.

The 37-year-old all-rounder smashed an unbeaten 46-ball 64, reaching his fifty off 38 deliveries, as Bangladesh made 159 for five in 20 overs on a decent-looking pitch.

Shakib, who also became the eighth batter to reach the landmark of 800 runs in the T20 mega event, starred in three crucial stands of 48, 41, and an unbroken 29 with Tanzid Hasan (35 off 26), Mahmudullah Riyad (25 off 21) and Jaker Ali (14* off 7), respectively, to propel Bangladesh to a competitive score.

Being the recipient of criticism is nothing new for Shakib but the poster boy of Bangladesh was heavily scrutinised for underperforming in the first two matches of the mega event. Shakib could score just eight in the Tigers' two-wicket win against Sri Lanka in their tournament opener and managed three in the following four-run defeat to South Africa.

While Shakib had been struggling with the willow for a while now -- his last T20I fifty before today's knock dating back to October 2022, against Pakistan in a tri-nation series including hosts New Zealand -- it seemed as if he had let it spread to what comes naturally to him: his bowling.

Against South Africa, Shakib was used for just one over -- the first time in his T20 career that Shakib bowled just one over in a game that saw the completion of the full 20 overs. There were reasons for the team management's apparent reservation in limiting Shakib's overs against the Proteas as he had conceded 30 off three overs, including a 16-run over, in the Sri Lanka match.

Such performance even drew some scathing comments from experts, including former India opener Virender Sehwag who had asked for Shakib to "be embarrassed" and "retire from the format".

However, as he so often does, Shakib turned things around yesterday, displaying some confident strokeplay and game sense -- as if in reply to Sehwag and critics. He did see a few deliveries fly off the edge of his willow for boundaries but Shakib looked a different player altogether than he had been for a while, batting at a strike rate of around 140 and smashing a total of nine boundaries.

Bangladesh managed to reignite their confidence after winning their opening T20 World Cup fixture against Sri Lanka in New York on Saturday. Having come under immense scrutiny in their build-up to the major event, Najmul Hossain Shanto's side seemed to have turned a corner and now eye a place into the Super 8s of the tournament following the thrilling win against the Lankans. With an encounter against South Africa up next, The Daily Star's podcast Pitch Perfect brings you a discussion about Bangladesh's chances to go through to the next stage.

Highlights

*Bangladesh possess a very bleak record against South Africa in T20Is as the Tigers are yet to win a game against the Proteas. The Tigers lost all eight of their encounters.

*Bangladesh have faced South Africa three times in T20 World Cups, suffering convincing defeats each time.

*Bangladesh's 104-run defeat against South Africa in Sydney in the 2022 T20 World Cup is their biggest margin of defeat in the tournament.

*Bangladesh opener Soumya Sarkar faces the challenge of not achieving the record of registering the most ducks in T20Is. With 13 ducks in 83 innings, Soumya is now tied at the top of the unwanted list with Ireland's Paul Stirling, who also managed the same number of ducks in 143 innings.

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.

Naturally, following the game there was scathing criticism regarding Shakib's performances.

Read more

Shakib should feel ashamed and retire from T20Is: Sehwag

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.

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Tamim defends Shakib’s place in playing XI

"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.