Opening selection looms large ahead of Afghan series

As the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) heads towards the closing stages, the upcoming Afghanistan series, slated to begin with the ODI series on February 23, starts to come into view.

While Bangladesh find ODIs easier to deal with, their T20I skipper Mahmudullah Riyad would have to resist a strong Afghan T20I outfit in the two-match T20 series, slated to be played between March 3-5 at Dhaka's Mirpur. The focus would be on the top-order form, especially the opening batters such as Mohammad Naim, who is lacking in form in the BPL following Bangladesh's T20 World Cup debacle.

Bangladesh's troubles at the top was further defined when Saif Hassan, initially earmarked as a Test opener, was played in the Pakistan T20Is at home. With Afghanistan's strength in the format is of particular concern, the ongoing BPL gives indications of form and what the selectors might be thinking.

"Naim is our regular opener in the T20s. Last year, Naim was the highest run-getter in T20Is [575 runs in 26 innings] for us. He's having a bad patch but this year, his BPL is not going well. However, not much time left," national selector Habibul Bashar told The Daily Star yesterday.

Naim has come in at number three, number four and number seven so far. In the match against Chattogram, he was pushed back to number eight, almost being shielded during a crucial run-chase with Tamim carrying the side. Then he failed to take advantage of a no-ball against Mrittunjoy in that last over, only giving a simple return catch before failing to put away a low full-toss in the final delivery.

"It is unfortunate [that he hasn't been playing at the top for his franchise] that he had to bat deeper, which is not his position. This did not help, and we can't do anything as it is the franchise's decision," Bashar stated.

Is it a negative for Naim? "He's still a young player. A player can go through a bad season," came Bashar's reply.

When asked whether the selectors would want Naim, being last year's top-scorer, to bat in other positions to increase his power-hitting abilities, Bashar said: "Not at all, he's an opener. When he plays for Bangladesh, he will open."

Liton Das has been amongst the runs since the UAE debacle and has found runs in the BPL with two crafty knocks but consistency is an issue.

"He [Liton] wasn't dropped but rested and that time out worked for him. He's one of our best batsmen and has played well in the other two formats too. He is a bit off-colour in T20s but has the ability. Since Tamim isn't playing, his performance will be crucial at opening slot," Bashar said.

With everything considered, a right-left opening combination would not be mandatory where 'the best two should play', according to Bashar.

Soumya Sarkar, too, has found runs in his last two BPL matches (43 and 82*). Anamul Haque Bijoy (248 runs in 8 matches) is the fourth-highest run-getter in the tournament. Mahmudul Hasan Joy, looks like he has the head and the shots for the format, have paced himself well with a strike-rate of 132 -- the highest among local batters that are among top run-getters. 23-year-old Munim Shahriar appears to have the T20 mindset as well.

"We're thinking of everyone. It's good when top-order batters find runs in domestic cricket since it gives us options."

Head coach Russell Domingo is due to return on 19th of this month. "We will talk over Zoom [with Domingo] when we select the team," Bashar concluded.