Dhaka: Bangladesh can only hope to set a record in the T20 World Cup if they get better pitches at home, new captain Najmul Hussain Shanto told AFP ahead of the exhibition tournament.
Najmul, who was appointed as the all-round captain only on February 25 to replace the newly minted politician Shakib Al Hasan, blamed the failure on the home pitches that did not match the typical running celebrations seen elsewhere in the Twenty20 format.
“Some of us can take that as an excuse, but it’s true that we played some games on a good ticket.”
Bangladesh pitches are known for their low-scoring innings and only one player in the World Cup squad, top-order batsman Towhid Hridoy, has a T20 international strike rate of more than 130.
“It is difficult to change things in six months. If we continue with good tickets for one or two years, the strike rate will increase,” said Najmul.
Ninth-ranked Bangladesh have started to see some improvement in their short game over the past decade, having won at home against powerhouses Australia, England and New Zealand.
But this week, they suffered a 2-1 loss to the United States in a three-game warm-up series in Houston.
“We won some innings and we won against big teams,” Najmul said before the US series. “The team’s confidence is in good shape.
Former Nejmul Shakib, the most prolific player in the T20 top-order, made a brief appearance for this month’s home series against Zimbabwe but has not played a Twenty20 international for nearly a year.
Shakib, 37, was named to the Bangladesh bench in January and is set to hang his head soon alongside fellow batsman Mahmudullah Riyad, 38.
“Of course, I want him to give his best and play in the World Cup,” said Najmul.
It was a decision when he ended his career. As captain, I want every player to have experience.
Bangladesh face an uphill battle in their group with strong opponents in South Africa and Sri Lanka, and Nepal in only their second T20 World Cup with the Netherlands.
They will start against Sri Lanka in Dallas on June 7, the side that Nejmul’s has made a fierce rivalry with since the ODI World Cup last year.
Their encounter in India saw Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews become the first batsman to be appointed in international cricket.
During their tour of Bangladesh in March, Sri Lanka reigned supreme, pointing to an imaginary watch on their wrist to celebrate their T20 series win, accusing Nejmuli of “not moving” from the Mathews incident.
“We have moved on,” he told AFP when asked about his illness.
“From the day it happened, we didn’t do anything that made us think about it. I can’t say too much about them. But as a team, we’re focusing on our game.”
