The Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo wanted to play the same eleven from the first Test for the second Test against Sri Lanka, slated for tomorrow at Kandy, but said that he will have to keep in mind the workload of the faster bowlers while also reminding that the final playing eleven does not rest solely up to him.
The wicket has been in focus after the first Test produced a lot of runs but not many wickets. Domingo felt the surface was going to be a good one.
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“The wicket we saw yesterday but I haven’t seen it today, but still looks like a good wicket,” he said.
Opener Saif Hassan had scored 0 and 1 in the first and second innings respectively of the first Test. The batsman was going to be given opportunity again with the left-right batting combination in mind.
“I definitely want to give Saif Hassan another go. Opening the batting is hard in Test match cricket and a lot of openers who come into the side, take a bit of time to find their feet. So, we want to provide him another opportunity tomorrow and it’s nice to have a right-hand left-hand batting combination opening the batting,” Domingo said.
The pace bowlers, especially Taskin Ahmed impressed with his aggression and persistence during the first Test. The Tigers while hoping for a better wicket, also have to consider not putting too much pressure on the bowlers with only three days’ gap between the first and the second Test.
Asked if the same pace trio will feature, Domingo said: “Obviously I think they are three leading fast bowlers at the moment. I have been really impressed with young player like Shoriful Islam, who really showed some good stuff in the nets. I would like to keep the same team going but I need to see how they are in terms of the workload they have had over the last Test match. There are guys like Taskin who bowled 37 overs, Ebadat bowled 20-odd, Rahi 20-odd. So, I need to make sure they stay fresh and ready to give a hundred percent again over the next few days. We have given them two days off and just want to see how they feel in today’s light practice and then make a final decision.”
The head coach however clarified that changes there could be changes in the form of having six batsmen and five bowlers, saying that the decision rests on the whole management and not just him.
The Tigers’ decision to play six batsmen and five bowlers were applauded, since it showed an intent to be aggressive.
“I need to check with the selectors but I think that is the way for us (six batsman and five bowlers) to try and move forward here. Obviously when you got Shakib in your team, you can play seven batters. But when you don’t have that all-rounder, we got to be brave and try and have five bowlers who can get us twenty wickets.
“So, I am to sit with the selectors this afternoon and get their opinion. If it was solely upto me, that’s probably the way I would go but there is a panel of selectors that needs to be consulted with and it’s got to be a decision that we all got to support,” he concluded.
