‘We can’t defend anymore’

"If we can't produce batters who are capable of playing spin, there are no easy solutions. We might be in danger if we do not resolve it. And Sri Lanka may capitalise on that weakness against us in the next series."

— Nazmul Abedin Fahim

The disastrous Test series against South Africa saw Bangladesh's ability to face spinners called into question and while former left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Jr. emphasised the need to balance things out with more spin-friendly wickets at the domestic level, Nazmul Abedin Fahim, a mentor to many leading cricketers, shone a spotlight on the batters' inability to face spinners on the international stage.

"Those who are in the national team squad right now have less training when it comes to playing spinners. Not getting to play in the national league due to international commitments is a big reason for that. Furthermore, we are now focusing on making domestic wickets flatter and more seam-friendly, which creates a gap in terms of facing spinners. Consequently, we are suffering in the Tests," Enamul began.

"But we need to have a balance in the number of wickets," he added. "One wicket should be spin-friendly and another should be for pacers. But that has not been happening. The emphasis now is to have more grass on the pitch. Of course, that helps the seamers, but we have to make balance things out for spinners at the same time so that batters get more experience of playing the spin," Enamul added.

The former spinner believes that more red-ball cricket in the domestic format would help batters be more efficient in the Test arena.

"Our preparation with the red ball should come from National Cricket League or BCL. I don't think it's that big a problem. We grew up playing spin. So if we dedicate enough time, train properly and increase the number of four-day cricket with the red ball, the batters can work more on defending spin. I think we can overcome the situation. We know how to play the spin, it's just a lack of preparation," he concluded.

Meanwhile, Nazmul Abedin Fahim illustrated the contrast between the conditions of wickets at home and in South Africa.

"The wickets they played on are not similar to the spinning wickets we have at home. Over there, the ball not only turns after it drops, but the pace and bounce also pose a big challenge to our batters. We don't usually face spinners in such conditions because pacers dominate," Fahim said before speaking about the need to improve mentally.

 "Another thing we can work on is the mental aspect. I think there is a barrier when we face situations that are outside our comfort zone. We will not always find ourselves in favourable situations. Hence, we need to work on our skills and mentality even when we are uneasy," he added.

Defending may be an important facet of Test cricket, but Fahim believes the defensive skills of the Bangladesh batters is unreliable.

"Our defence is not just weak; we can't defend anymore. If I say the defence is weak, that means there is some form of defending. But I don't have any faith in our defence. So, the only way we can do something is through attacking because we know we can't stay at the crease for a long time. It's a form of surrender.

"If we can't produce batters who are capable of playing spin, there are no easy solutions. We might be in danger if we do not resolve it. And Sri Lanka may capitalise on that weakness against us in the next series," Fahim concluded.