Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com
Liton Das, Bangladesh’s substitute captain in Shakib Al Hasan’s absence in the one-off Test against Afghanistan, is keen to test their skills on a green-top wicket and says he is confident of upholding the challenge and winning the Test.
The Test that begins on June 14 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, a ground that is known as a spin paradise, but for the Test against Afghanistan it was covered with green grass, making it a perfect pitch for the pacers.
Many believed Bangladesh produced a green pitch to neutralise the effect of Afghan spinners, who are still quite capable of scything down any batting line-up despite the absence of their star spinner Rashid Khan.
Liton said it was just a case of testing them, but he admitted they will play on this kind of wicket for this series for the time being.
‘It’s quite normal to play on a normal wicket against a team like this. We also have a quality pace attack. So it is very normal,’ Liton told reporters at Mirpur on Monday.
‘Mirpur has always had turning wickets when we played here. So, our challenge will be how to play better on a grassy wicket and how to prolong our innings.’
Having said that, he indicated they would play with five genuine bowlers, a thing that Bangladesh were never used to, at least in home conditions.
‘When you play on an even wicket, it is tough without five bowlers. And I always prefer to go with five bowlers on a wicket like this.’
Bangladesh have included five pacers in the 15-member squad — Taskin Ahmed, Khaled Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Shoriful Islam and uncapped Mushfik Hasan.
In that case, Bangladesh will go with three pacers along with two spinners in Taijul Islam and Mehidy Hasan Miraz. Liton, however, said he loves to see Mehidy as a batsman too.
At the same time, Liton looked unfazed by the absence of Shakib, who generally gives the team a cushion of an extra-player in both batting and bowling.
According to Liton, Shakib’s role is more important in ODIs and T20Is than in Test cricket.
‘Shakib always gives balance, as he can bat and bowl both. In Test cricket, we have players to bowl for long spells. His absence may hurt our batting in Test cricket, but I think we have players to cover that. But in the ODI and T20 formats, it is really tough without Shakib.’
Afghanistan, who will play their first Test in two years, have come here with an inexperienced side against whom Bangladesh should win effortlessly. Moreover, Rashid’s absence made their task easier.
But Liton doesn’t want to take anything for granted.
‘We would have taken it seriously even if they had Rashid Khan. We’ll continue to play the same game. We have also taken a break from Test cricket. The last time we played was in April. Then we played white ball cricket. I think we are better than them in one aspect: we have been playing Test cricket for a long time, and our maturity level is also higher because we cricketers play a lot of Test cricket now,’ Liton revealed.
‘Still, at the end of the day, if you don’t perform well on the field and can’t execute your plan, it will play a negative role. Of course, we have less idea about their cricketers because they have played more ODIs and T20s. It is difficult to judge their Test credentials. We have a plan up our sleeves. If we can execute it, it will be good.’
