By Kuldip Lal
Bangladesh will enjoy playing all their six league matches at home in Dhaka and Chittagong, where they have won seven of their last 10 one-dayers and lost just once.
Published: Feb 01, 2011, 11:56 AM (IST)
Edited: Mar 05, 2014, 06:19 PM (IST)
By CricketCountry Staff
New Delhi, February 1, 2011
By Kuldip Lal
Bangladesh are drawn with India, South Africa, England, West Indies, Ireland and the Netherlands in the round-robin Group B from which four teams will qualify for the quarter-finals.
They must defeat one of the established Test nations and ensure they do not slip-up against Ireland and the Netherlands to advance to the knock-out rounds.
The advantage Bangladesh enjoy is they play all their six league matches at home in Dhaka and Chittagong, where they have won seven of their last 10 one-dayers and lost just once.
The victories include a superb 4-0 rout of New Zealand last October, indicating Bangladesh will be a force to reckon with on their own spin-friendly wickets.
The team suffered a blow when former captain and pace spearhead Mashrafe Mortaza was not included in the squad due to a recurring knee injury.
Mortaza, 27, has been the pivot of the Bangladesh attack with 146 one-day wickets, including a match-winning 4-38 against India in the last World Cup.
The team’s Australian coach Jamie Siddons admitted Mortaza’s absence was a major setback.
“A fit and firing ‘Mash’ was obviously our first preference, and this is a huge disappointment for him and the team as well,” said Siddons.
“The loss of ‘Mash’ will be seen in his leadership and experience. We cannot cover this aspect of his loss.”
The latest injury follows six knee reconstructions in the space of eight years, but Bangladesh are hoping Mortaza may still play if he recovers fully before the tournament starts.
The ‘Tigers’ will bank on skipper Shakib, the leading all-rounder in the official one-day rankings, veteran batsman Mohammad Ashraful and star spinner Abdur Razzak to lift the side.
Left-hander Shakib is a reluctant captain, but has led from the front with 787 runs in 27 one-dayers last year and picked up 46 wickets with his left-arm spin.
The openers have also been in dominating form with Imrul Kayes the nation’s top-scorer in 2010 with 867 runs from 27 games and the swashbuckling Tamim Iqbal with 776 from 23.
A key moment for Bangladesh will be the tournament opener against power-packed India at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium in Dhaka on February 19.
A victory — or even a close loss — will set the ‘Tigers’ up for the ride of their lives.
©AFP
