CWC 2019: Team review – Shakib’s consistency outshines inconsistent Bangladesh
One of the positives to come out from the 2019 World Cup is Bangladesh. The Asian team challenged the top nations with all their might and never backed down. No opposition could take Bangladesh for granted and none of Bangladesh’s wins were termed as upsets. The Tigers made a solid argument about them being a team that has to be treated with respect.
Taking the 8th spot in the final points tally, Bangladesh finished with three wins from their nine completed games. They were left to rue their washed-out game against Sri Lanka. Mortaza’s men defeated South Africa, West Indies and Afghanistan while came extremely close against New Zealand. Their journey ended with the 28-run loss versus India.
What went well?
Shakib Al Hasan stood head and shoulders above his teammates. The left-hander became only the third batsman to score 600-plus runs in the World Cup. He also picked 11 wickets thus proving his title of being the World’s best all-rounder. His best innings came against West Indies, where he scored 124 not out to complete the chase of 322 runs.
Mustafizur Rehman shone with his variations. Taking 20 wickets from eight matches, the left-arm bowler picked two five-wickets hauls in the competition. He was the major strike bowler for Bangladesh and provided crucial breakthroughs.
What went wrong?
Bangladesh had the best players of their generation at their prime participating in the tournament. Of them, only Shakib fired. Mushfiqur did well in patches but was not as consistent as expected. Tamim Iqbal managed only one fifty in the tournament and his below-par outing hurt Bangladesh the most. Mashrafe Mortaza made no impact with the ball and ended up with one wicket from his 56 overs.
Find of the tournament
One unexpected name that shined while the big guns failed was the right-arm medium pacer Mohammad Saifuddin. He was pin-point with his yorkers and complimented Mustafizur immensely well in the death overs. Saifuddin finished as the second-highest wicket-taker of the side with 11 wickets from seven matches.
Areas for improvement
Bangladesh desperately needs another wicket-taking option. Currently, only Mustafizur and Saifuddin have looked potent which has harmed the side’s chance in crunch situations. They do not have any wrist-spinner as well which makes their bowling defensive rather than wicket-taking.
Also, the nation will need to seek its next Iqbal, Rahim and Shakib. Young batsmen have not been able to crack into the playing XI on a consistent basis. Bangladesh needs to groom a bunch of players if they are to be a threat in the 2023 World Cup.
