At a time when Bangladesh are finding it extremely difficult even to challenge South Africa, let alone winning a game, losing two of their biggest stars – Tamim Iqbal and Mustafizur Rahman- is the worst possible thing that could have happened to them and ODI skipper Mashrafe Mortaza has admitted it.
Tamim had suffered the injury even before the start of the tour during a practice game but had gone on to play the first Test and the second ODI.
However, his tour came to a premature end when he aggravated the injury earlier this week. On the other hand, Mustafizur Rahman got ruled out of the remainder of the tour owing to an ankle injury.
Speaking ahead of the third and final One-Day International, Mortaza conceded that losing the ‘best bowler and batsman’ has made it tough for the visitors to select the best possible XI.
“It is a big blow losing the best bowler and batsman,” Mashrafe said. “When two of the best performers are not around it gets difficult to select the best possible XI. They have played a crucial role in our success.”
Barring the first innings in the first Test when they scored 320, Bangladesh has failed to come up with an impressive performance on tour. They had gone on to lose the Test series-opener by 333 runs before being thrashed by an innings and 254 runs in the second Test.
Even a change in format and addition of Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan did not change their fortunes, as centuries from Hashim Amla, and Quinton de Kock fired the Proteas to a crushing ten-wicket win. The Asian side was then blown away by AB de Villiers’ career-best 176 in the second game and are now in danger of being whitewashed.
However, Mortaza urged his players to play their natural game freely despite the pressure mounting on them.
“Pressure is bound to come, and it is more likely to surround you when you are not performing,” he said. “If they can get over the pressure and play their natural game, I am confident that something good can happen.
“I want them to simply think about tomorrow’s match and follow the formula of taking it one game at a time.”