Bangladesh recently ended the T20I tri-series in New Zealand winless, losing twice to the hosts as well as Pakistan at Hagley Oval. In their campaign in the tri-series, they tried four different opening pairs and also rotated their fast bowlers, with their best batting performance coming in their final match against Pakistan albeit in a losing cause.
“I think we are very clear about the best team we want to play so the captain, myself and the director are all on the same page. We’re quite clear as to what combinations we want. I think we have got two-three combinations in mind and given the conditions we face on the day we might modify and adapt accordingly,” said Sriram after the end of Bangladesh’s run in the tri-series.
Despite the recent underwhelming run of Bangladesh in T20Is, Sriram was upbeat about testing different combinations bringing tons of learnings for him as well as for the side ahead of T20 World Cup.
“You look at it as experiments but we look at it as different combinations. You learn about your players when you put them in different situations and learn how each of them responds. I think we have learned quite a bit.”
“We’re very clear about the combinations we go with against different teams. It’s not about one slot (opening) I think for Bangladesh to win the game, everything has to come together. It’s not only about the opening slot or just about the pace bowlers. It’s about the entire team.”
With fast bowling coach Allan Donald hinting at changes in Bangladesh’s squad for the T20 World Cup, Sriram didn’t shy away from acknowledging the same, with Soumya Sarkar making a case for a late recall to the squad.
“He (Soumya) played a shot and got out. That’s intent. I think he was selfless and played for the team. He tried to get going in the first few overs when we got only six or seven runs. He tried to force the pace and got out but it happens.”
“He played a good knock at number three in the last game so I think there are good signs. A player like him, we need to really instil the confidence. We still have time (to bring changes in the World Cup squad). There will definitely be discussions and we’re open.”
Bangladesh will now travel to Brisbane, where they will play warm-up matches against Afghanistan and South Africa on October 17 and 19 respectively. They will play their first match of the Super 12 phase against a qualifying team on October 24 in Hobart, apart from facing another qualifier side, India, Pakistan and South Africa.
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