Tigers keen to ‘rectify mistakes’ in Jamaica Test

Challenging batting conditions are expected at Jamaica’s Sabina Park, where Bangladesh will seek a quick turnaround in the second Test against the West Indies, beginning Saturday. Following their 201-run defeat in the first Test in Antigua, the visitors are keen on improving their batting, particularly at the top of the order.

In the last two Tests at the venue, Pakistan’s Shaheen Shah Afridi picked up 18 wickets, and the Windies speedsters were not far behind during that 2021 series either.

It is set to be another trial by pace for the Bangladesh top-order batters, such as Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Zakir Hasan, who are already burdened by a lack of runs over the past few Test series. Changes are expected, but what will be crucial is for the top order to see off the new ball.

As was witnessed in Antigua, spending time at the wicket allowed batters to cash in later in the innings and score big runs.

For stand-in skipper Mehedi Hasan Miraz, it is about “rectifying mistakes”. Some batters were following the movement of the ball, getting thick outside edges. Miraz himself was prone to short deliveries, finding it difficult to duck under bouncers; although he had negotiated the short stuff better in the second innings, scoring 45.

“Since the conditions and pitch will be new [in Jamaica], we will consider those before making the eleven… We haven’t done well as a batting unit,” Miraz said after the match.

The middle order had put on a better effort after Mominul Haque had been able to absorb a chunk of the new-ball pressure. Miraz opined that they needed big 100-run stands to post the kind of scores that could help them bounce back in the two-match series.

“We didn’t have big partnerships. You saw that we had partnerships of 30-40 runs. If those partnerships had gotten to 100, the game [in Antigua] would have been different. Rectifying mistakes would help us get better going forward,” Miraz added.

Jaker Ali Anik, who scored a fifty and 31 in the two innings, emphasised that spending time at the crease was key to adapting to pace and bounce.

“My plan was to stay at the wicket as long as possible and keep my focus, since there was a lot of seam movement and bounce. If you get stuck in and play a lot of deliveries, there’s a better chance of adapting to the conditions,” Jaker said, hoping someone from the top order would score big to help the middle and lower-middle order withstand the Windies’ pace onslaught.