Liton's quest to recover composure

Despite having a high performance ceiling, Liton Das has had to prove his mettle over the last few years to be acknowledged as Bangladesh's top batter across formats. A slump in form eventually jeopardised his position as a guaranteed starter heading in to the T20 World Cup this year, but the wicketkeeper-batter's performance ceiling still weighed heavy enough for the team management in keeping him in the World Cup roster.

Something seems amiss with Liton. The same process that he followed, the level of calmness portrayed in a brilliant match-winning knock against New Zealand in the historic Mount Maunganui Test in early 2022, has not been exhibited for a while.

When it comes to the performance ceiling, the knock against India at the T20 World Cup in 2022 serves as a case in point. It is a ceiling that any other batter from the national side would like to have scaled, given the quality of the bowling lineup India had and the destruction Liton conjured with ease.

That innings was, perhaps, also the beginning of improvised shots. It paid off during that knock but has often brought his downfall in the shorter formats.

Even last year, Liton had struck 323 runs in nine T20Is, averaging over 40. Those knocks coincided with Bangladesh's whitewash of England, Afghanistan and Ireland at home in the shortest format, and, despite looking out of sorts, he managed a 41 not out in New Zealand which handed the Tigers their first T20I win on Kiwi soil.

Liton may not be an automatic starter but Bangladesh's plans could change drastically after just one game at the main event in the USA and West Indies. His return to form would be crucial and Liton now feels that he might have overlooked preparations during a good patch.

"It is important to hold onto your performances in good times, because you are playing well in one match and lot of things maybe be going around your head, like you are doing well and you start having a careless attitude," Liton said in a video posted by BCB yesterday.

He feels that Towhid Hridoy, whose batting is scaling up after every innings, is the example of how not to be complacent.

"I think during good times, a person who is working hard on continuous basis and having a clear mindset has a good thing going on. For example, I can talk about Towhid Hridoy. He is playing well for the last couple of matches and he is carrying the momentum [in to the World Cup], and that is a big thing," he added.

Liton says that he will try to do better than he had done in the past two T20 World Cups. He still has the trust of head coach, who said: "He is one of our top batsman; expecting big things from him at the World Cup."

Assistant coach Nic Pothas had earlier remarked that Liton was just one good innings from finding his groove. The USA series and the two warm-up matches for the World Cup would present Liton with the chance. However, the wait continues for the right-hander as he could only score 14 off 15 in a lacklustre batting display as an opener in the first T20I against the USA at the Prairie View Cricket Complex in Texas yesterday. 

To ensure his hard work pays off, Liton needs to return to the basics. Batting in T20 cricket is also about staying still and maintaining proper head position for a perfect tee off, whereas Liton has recently been moving around more than he did during his peak performances.

When it comes to getting back in his elements, he may just need to revisit what had clicked in his good times.