Tigers need Mominul to score big

Amid Bangladesh's continued top-order failure in Test cricket in recent times, one character that might have escaped wide scrutiny is Mominul Haque, who these days bats at number four position – one of the two most crucial batting positions in Test cricket.

Mominul's runs, particularly the big knocks, have always been vital to Bangladesh's cause as evidenced by the impact of his centuries. Out of the 12 tons he has scored in the format so far, 11 of those saw Bangladesh either nick a draw or clinch a win, with the only loss coming against the West Indies in 2021 when the left-hander's 115 was trumped by Kyle Mayers's double century in Chattogram.

Bangladesh's top four -- all left-handers -- put on a sorry show against India in the first Test in Chennai as it was yet another batting meltdown, starting at the top, that plunged them to a 280-run defeat. Mominul was a key figure in that failure as he registered a golden duck and 13 in the match. He got castled in both innings; Akash Deep angled one in to break through the gap between Mominul's bat and pad – almost identically to how he got bowled against Khurram Shahzad in Pakistan in the previous series – while Ravichandran Ashwin bowled a ripper from the same angle to take his off-stump in the second.

The 32-year-old batter, who made his Test debut in 2013, used to boast a batting average of beyond 50 in the early years of his career and subsequently became one of the pillars of the batting unit of Bangladesh. He could keep up that envious average for the first three years of his career, till 2016 that is, and since then it has regressed significantly (to 37.78) largely owing to a lack of consistency.

Then comes the home versus away debate with Mominul. As backed by his stats, Mominul averages just 25.29 in away Tests – a stark contrast to the 48.57 average at home. Of the 12 tons he has scored, only one came away from home (in Sri Lanka).

Mominul's recent struggles can be attributed to subtle technical issues, predominantly his head position and his bat-lift. In his early years, the direction of his bat-lift used to be aligned more with the wicket-keeper or at best the first slip which would allow him to have a steadier head position and in turn help with swinging his bat with a straighter face. But in recent years, his bat-lift has been more directed towards the wider slips, perhaps to give him more access to wider areas of the field and establish a broader stroke range, which however has made him a prime candidate for lbws and bowled-outs. He cocks his bat at a wider angle now (towards third man) which destabilises his head position. This does not always allow him to cover the line of the ball, especially when bowlers are trying to get him out from around the wicket, and hence he loses his bearings, becoming susceptible to lbws as well as bowled-outs.

In his last 17 innings since 2023, Mominul's percentage of lbw and bowled dismissals was roughly 43 percent, whereas the figure was 31 percent In the 102 innings prior, giving a percentage rise of 39.

Heading into the second Test in Kanpur, starting from September 27, it is of no doubt where India will be looking to target Mominul. And for Bangladesh to put up a fight, it will be vital for Mominul to do justice to his pedigree as a Test batter.