“On paper Bangladesh is a better team than visiting Zimbabwe,” was the encouraging statement made by all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan yesterday, ahead of the start of the first Test tomorrow at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.
He said that the team is only thinking about victory in the series, which is very important for the Tigers as win has been elusive in 2014.
The Tigers are under huge pressure following their continual defeats this year, so expectations are running high as they face the lowly opponents in their own den.
As usual, Shakib has a simple recipe to overcome this pressure.
“The team is under pressure, but we know if we can follow the basics and do the right things on the field, it will be possible to get a win. We have plenty of match-winners in our team and I am confident that the win will come if we can execute our plan,” said the all-rounder, who is going to return to Test cricket after serving a two-and-a-half-month ban, adding that they could not solely depend on their spin bowlers to take 20 wickets in order to win the Test match.
The situation was similar when the two teams met in a Test series last time but the Tigers fell short of expectations. “See the conditions were different there [as both the series in 2011 and 2013 were played in Zimbabwe]. We could not become accustomed to the conditions which was a problem. We will not face this kind of problem on home soil and I think on paper we are the better team. We are better in batting and both spin and fast bowling. But they may have an edge in the fielding department,” he said.
It was a typical Shakib answer when his attention was drawn to whether the issue of ratings would play in the minds of the players. “It has not come to my mind and I don’t know about the others’ thoughts. It is important to play good cricket and nothing can be better than a win.”
The response was the same when asked if there was any pressure going into the series. “I am not feeling any different and everybody is eager to do well in the series.”
The trend continued when he responded to a question about whether there would be any special challenges for him, given the fact that he missed the previous series while serving the ban.
“No, there is no such challenge. I came here to play, and will try to do my best.”
Shakib’s suspension was not only reduced to allow him to make an early return, but he was also awarded with the vice-captaincy role for the one-day side. He however has no special feelings towards it. “I am not thinking about the one-day series now. Let’s see what kind of emotions come to me once the one-day series gets underway.”
Source: The Daily Star
