More than the ability, it’s about the execution and calmness to finish off a game. “it’s not finished until it is finished ‘’ as it says.
While they do so much right throughout the whole match, they seem to panic in the later stages.
Started with 2016 world t20, when they lost to India by a solitary run. 2 runs were needed in 3 balls; whole leg side field was employed to save the boundaries. When they should have just tapped it to the leg side what Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmadullah does, goes for the glory, hits it in the air, and Bangladesh failed to score even one in last 3!
Fast forward to Nidhas trophy 2017, again it’s India who they are facing. After a brilliant one run over from fizz, Rubel came and concede 22 and the final over, we all know what happened.
Now again in the Asia cup Final Bangladesh were somewhere from where they could have won. But a brilliant calm well calculated chase denied them the victory.
I think what their captains need to understand is you can’t keep an over from your 5th bowler till it’s the last over. Overs from the fifth bowler should be completed before the 40th over when it comes to ODIs and 17th over in the T20s. If you calculate that well enough, your top two bowlers are more capable of winning it in the pressure situations, as Fizz did against Afghanistan. There is no doubt that Mashrafi Bin Mortaza and Sakib Al Hasan in that t20 were instrumental with the field and bowling changes, but this are the little things which makes difference between winning and losing!
This was originally published here.