'We need to reassess a few things in batting': Mahmudullah
Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah admitted that the lack of good starts with the bat has been hurting them. "We've been lacking a good start, on these wickets it gets difficult later on," said Mahmudullah.
England continued their domination in the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup as they annihilated Bangladesh in their second game in the Super 12s. There was hardly any moment when Bangladesh looked in control. They failed miserably both with bat and ball and their body language wasn't that great in the field as well.
Bangladesh's opening pair, throughout the tournament, failed to provide good starts. It didn't change this time around. After Liton Das, the in-form Mohammad Naim too got out cheaply. Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah admitted that the lack of good starts with the bat has been hurting them. "We've been lacking a good start, on these wickets it gets difficult later on," said Mahmudullah.
Lack of substantial partnerships and too many dot balls added to Bangladesh's miseries. They played as many as 53 dot balls in the innings and no one except Mushfiqur Rahim crossed 20. Mahmudullah said, "We were disappointed with the batting, it was a good wicket but we didn't start well and didn't have any partnerships in the middle either."
Bangladesh had been reasonably successful while defending totals but that hasn't been the case in this tournament. They have now lost two consecutive matches batting first. Mahmudullah stated that they would reassess and come up with a better plan in the upcoming matches. "We are more skilled hitters than power hitters, we don't want to change that because we believe we can post good totals. We need to reassess and come up with a good plan."
England have been extremely successful with the ball thus far in the competition. After bundling out the defending champions West Indies for only 55, they restricted Bangladesh to 125 which made the job easier for the batter. England captain Eoin Morgan credited the bowlers for back-to-back brilliant bowling performances. "The bowlers have started the tournament exceptionally well, they've adapted really well again today," said Morgan. "They've been very disciplined and backed up with good catching and ground fielding. It's a huge compliment to how far out white-ball cricket in general has come along, a lot of players involved in the 2019 World Cup success and that's lent itself to T20 cricket as well."
Jason Roy was the player of the match for his scintillating knock of 61 off 38 balls. Roy absolutely tormented the Bangladesh bowlers and looked at home. Morgan heaped praise on him and said that it's very difficult to set a field when Roy bats. "It's nice for him (Roy) and Dawid (Malan) to get some time at the wicket. The way Jason plays is so imposing, it makes it difficult to set fields. It's great to see him in good touch."
It was Jason Roy's 50th T20I and he made the occasion momentous with an award-winning performance. Roy has been a devastating batter especially against the faster bowlers. But he has improved his game against the spinners as well and that was evident against Bangladesh. When asked how much his game changed over the years, Roy said, "You grow up a tiny bit, at the start of my career it was sporadic T20s here and there, nice to get into more of a routine now. Want to get off to as good a start as possible, but these pitches can be quite hard to do so. Today I hit a few gaps but it's definitely a case of keeping wickets in hand and then powering through the back end."
"About facing spin, it's a part of my game that's improved a lot. Today was a big test, so I had to use all the skills I've learned," he added.
Bangladesh will face the West Indies in their next match in the World Cup on Friday in Sharjah.