Handed a shock loss in their T20 World Cup opener against Scotland, Bangladesh will have to sort some batting problems in a must-win game against upbeat hosts Oman on Tuesday.
Bangladesh came into the tournament as the sixth-ranked team who had beaten New Zealand and Australia at home. However, they were found wanting against a spirited Scotland on Sunday and lost the game by six runs. Bangladesh were expected to run away with it after reducing Scotland to 53 for six but the pressure of the big stage perhaps got the better of them.
Skipper Mahmudullah blamed the batters for the unexpected loss and said they must perform better against Oman, who thrashed Papua New Guinea in their opener.
Bangladesh need to win on Tuesday to keep themselves in contention for a spot in the Super-12 stage.
“As a batting unit, we have disappointed ourselves, so it’s a big concern, and we need to see things where we have made those mistakes and probably need to try not to repeat those mistakes in the next game,” said Mahmudullah.
Bangladesh bowlers were brilliant at the start of the game but should not have allowed their opponents to score 140 from the very precarious situation. With pitches expected to remain on the slower side, stroke making will not be easy and the batters will have to find a way to get the boundaries and those quick singles.
More will be expected from Bangladesh openers Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar who failed on Sunday. Star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was far from his best with the bat and will be expected to find his rhythm against Oman.
