I Think Bangladesh Are Going To Struggle In Those Conditions In England, Says Brad Hogg
May 15, 2017 at 1:23 PM
Brad Hogg, the former Australian left-arm wrist spinner, feels the rising Bangladesh team may struggle in the English conditions during the ICC Champions Trophy which is scheduled to start from June 1st.
“There are a number of teams. I can’t pick the winner. But I think Bangladesh are going to struggle in those conditions over there (in England),” Hogg said in a recent interview with a Mumbai-based newspaper.
Hogg may seem to have confused when asked for a specific winner but he definitely pointed also out at the teams who would be strong favourites and may eventually win it.
“I think Australia have the team to take it out. India is going to be really competitive. South Africa are coming of age, they have a good team all across the board,” Hogg told.
Teams are currently busy preparing for the multi-nation tournament. Bangladesh, too, are currently in Ireland playing a tri-series which also features the hosts and New Zealand. The opening fixture, which was between Ireland and Bangladesh, ended in rain curtailed game with no result.
The Bangla tigers are hopeful of putting up a strong show in the tournament. Their recent form in the limited overs cricket has been very impressive and they certainly seem to be in line for causing some upset in the coming days.
The impact of their consistent performances in the limited overs cricket reflects in the rankings where they sit at No.7 ahead of Pakistan and West Indies. Since the 2015 Cricket World Cup, their progress graph has been on a constant high with wins over strong nations like India Pakistan and South Africa in 2016 followed by a closely fought tour of Sri Lanka.
All these showings have created a great sense of optimism in the Bangladesh unit ahead of the Champions Trophy with the home fans tagging them as the dark horse.
The ongoing tri-series is seen as the proper preparation to get customised to the conditions that may challenge them in England. In fact, they also have a golden opportunity of rising to No. 6 in the ODI ranking, their best position since entering the ODI format, if they end up unbeaten in the ongoing Ireland Tri-series.