No one to turn a game around: Shakib

Bangladesh have been foundering through a miserable patch in their cricketing history.

Fans and the media are wondering why a rising cricket team is repeatedly putting up disappointing shows – even on home turf.

Their failure in the World Twenty20, where they lost all four of their Super 10 matches, was preceded by dismal show in the Asia Cup in February-March at home. This followed another winless home series against the newly crowned T20 World Champions Sri Lanka in January-February.

Bangladesh’s star cricketer Shakib Al Hasan had been through all this.

The left-arm all-rounder spoke on the buzzing issue to Anik Mishkat, the bdnews24.com cricket correspondent, before flying to India to join the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL (Indian Premier League) on Tuesday.

bdnews24.com: How well do Bangladesh play T20s?

Shakib: I won’t say we’re doing very badly. However, we have a lot of room for improvements. A couple of world-class bowlers are needed to win T20s. We are badly lacking in that area.

We often lose matches after putting up scores of 150-160, which other teams don’t. They have the bowlers to win a match with that score.

Besides, we need a batsman at six or seven who can turn the match around in a couple of overs. The top order and middle order need batsmen who can strike immediately after coming in. We don’t have players like (Glenn) Maxwell (Australia’s aggressive middle order batsman).

bdnews24.com: So it is apparent that there is a lot of room for improvement. But how will that be achieved?

Shakib

: Certainly we have to make individual improvements. Additionally, if we consider the team as a whole, there definitely are aspects that need tuning up.

But it is difficult to say what the process should be to make that happen. Maybe, we have to play a lot of matches. Several players in the team haven’t played too many T20s. So, when they play on a stage like that of the World Cup, they are naturally a little nervous.

bdnews24.com: It is often said that there is not much difference between big and small teams in T20s. But except winning against the minnows, why haven’t Bangladesh been able to defeat any major team apart from the West Indies?

Shakib

: That is difficult to tell. It would not be fair to say there are no differences; the differences are minimized. In my view, we must play lots of matches regularly as a team to improve.

As we have played a lot of one-day matches over the last ten years, we have somewhat reached a position in them.

And as I’ve already said, we don’t have those one or two players who can snatch victory for the team by themselves. It is very crucial (to have someone like that) in T20s.

You may have noticed this in any team that two or three bowlers bowl well and two batsmen bat well at the most. But that is not so in our case.

The team’s success comes first when we win. Everyone has a contribution in that. That is why we do well in one-days.

That format provides more opportunities for everyone to contribute. In comparison, T20s offer much less scope.

bdnews24.com: You said during the World Cup that something was wrong with our process. Now can you say where the process went wrong?

Shakib

: Somewhere, something did go wrong. If everything went right, our results would’ve shown. Not everything went right.

It is not easy to say where things went wrong. But the truth is we haven’t played up to the mark individually. That influenced the team. Several of the team’s main players couldn’t perform. I think all that together led to the outcome.

bdnews24.com: It is said that the top order creates the game. Despite that, the best batsmen were sent lower down the order. Was this a negative strategy Bangladesh adopted in the World Cup?

Shakib

: Hard to say. It would’ve been better if the coach and the captain were asked this. It is they who primarily thought of it.

They told me, if I stay at four, the team would be well-balanced. There was no problem, I said. I can play at any position for the team. That is why I’m playing at four. But I like to play in the top order in T20s.

bdnews24.com: You’ve played five T20 World Cup competitions. Have your expectations of the team and your individual performance matched your accomplishments?

Shakib

: We have not done well in any World Cup as a team. We have defeated only the West Indies in the first edition. I could not put up individual performances either.

Altogether, it appears to me that we’ve done better this time than before. We’ve played a number of matches this time in contrast to two matches in each of the other editions. You cannot tell how well or badly you did by playing just two matches. You can analyse yourself after playing at least five matches.

bdnews24.com: BCB President Nazmul Hassan said we have no world-class spinner except Shakib.

Shakib

: Perhaps nobody was up to the mark in this World Cup. But I have faith. If our spinners can all give their best, we will do well. I’m not saying that we have world-class spinners. But with the combined effort from the whole team we will not do badly against any team.

bdnews24.com: The fans are disappointed at your several controversial actions in and out of the field.

Shakib

: I, too, don’t want to somehow get involved in controversies. Perhaps I have to be more cautious from next time. I have never done anything deliberately to be controversial. I will keep the fans in mind, and will definitely try not to get mixed up in any more controversies.