What exactly is Bangladesh’s home advantage? The question has been one of the more pressing in Bangladesh’s Test cricket in recent years, as the squad has failed to produce such an edge at home, pointing to a lack of long-term vision.
Despite preparing surfaces that they thought were more suited to their strengths, Bangladesh has frequently suffered at home against top sides in the format. Another example was yesterday’s four-wicket loss to New Zealand.
Following the catastrophe of the World Cup, the cricket board was eager to put dismal performances in India under the carpet, and a Test series win seemed like the ideal antidote for the incumbent board. While a 150-run win in Sylhet in the first Test demonstrated that the team is prepared for conditions that have something for everyone, the wicket offered up in Mirpur reverted to the 2016 and 2017 pattern from head coach Chandika Hathurusingha’s first term. The only difficulty is that the template for success that has led to victories against England and Australia on such tracks frequently backfires on the Tigers.
Bangladesh again relied on their spinners to bowl better than their opponents, which they may have done. However, the Bangladesh hitters struggled more than their Kiwi counterparts, resulting in another Test loss and the loss of a historic series.
Even the throng in Mirpur yesterday was discussing the game. Shoriful Islam’s initial ball just shaped away, and as it landed, it rolled to the wicket-keeper. After the game, BCB president Nazmul Hassan stated that they expected the squad to do better on such a surface.
Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto stated that the home advantage aspect did not work against them.
“I don’t believe so. We are not here to improve when we play Tests. This is not a practice area. We’re attempting to win the Test. It is critical that we prepare for victory in the Test. But we should definitely take advantage of this opportunity. “We can prepare in first-class cricket by trying out good wickets or wickets like these,” he noted at a press conference yesterday, despite the fact that the second Test resulted in a misinterpretation of the home advantage.
While India and Sri Lanka also generate twisting tracks, the pitches usually have true bounce. At Mirpur, balls frequently bounced so low that batters were concerned about one sneaking through under the bat or taking off from a length. Batters’ success appeared to be determined by luck or fate.
Will the hitters have faith when they travel to New Zealand for the ODI and T20I series? They’d have to re-acclimate to actual bounce, always falling behind the rest of the globe.
“There was a turn and a bounce.” The hitters had a terrible time. As batters, we must relish these trials. We desired this wicket. As a batting group, it was critical to consider how we could have advanced the team on the strength of large partnerships. When asked if the uneven bounce was more challenging than the turn spinners enjoyed, Shanto remarked, “I hope batters will enjoy these conditions in the future.”
Thus, after a World Cup disaster in which the batters failed to capitalize on sporting wickets, the Bangladesh think-tank outwitted the Test team this time as well.