(Image Source: AP)
[Saba Sports News] Bangladesh’s ODI skipper, Shakib Al Hasan, expressed confidence in his return to the playing XI for their crucial World Cup match against South Africa at the Wankhede Stadium. Shakib underwent a 25-minute batting session at the stadium to assess his fitness.
Shakib had sustained a quad tear during a match against New Zealand and was unable to play against India on October 19, despite his efforts.
Speaking to reporters in Mumbai ahead of the South Africa fixture, Shakib said, “When I practiced yesterday, I didn’t feel anything negative. I will train today, and if everything is okay, then I am fit.”
He emphasized the importance of the fitness test on the day and explained that he had to consider the potential consequences of playing through discomfort. Shakib stressed that he was currently in good condition and had no pain, but he needed to test himself in running and other aspects of the game.
“I regret missing a World Cup match for the first time,” said Shakib. “Yes, obviously there was some discomfort and I wasn’t in a good condition. It was also important to understand whether playing that game would make me miss the rest of the matches or maybe miss one or two games like in Taskin’s case, and if that would be good,” he said.
Shakib also discussed the team’s decision to use Mehidy Hasan in the top order, citing his strong batting performances. He acknowledged that some established batters had been moved lower down the order to accommodate Mehidy’s promotion.
“When he (Mehidy) scored that hundred as an opener against Afghanistan (in the Asia Cup), we thought he should do it again in the World Cup. He made runs against England and Sri Lanka in the practice matches. He scored runs against Afghanistan, so you have to give a batter who is doing well more chance. This is why he is batting higher up the order,” Shakib said.
“I also think that some of our established batters are going a bit lower down the order, but is there a guarantee that they will score higher up the order? These are difficult and tricky decisions that we have to take. It has mixed results. I think we still had chances to score 280-290 runs in all three matches,” he added.
Regarding the upcoming match against South Africa, Shakib acknowledged their strong form but pointed out that the Netherlands had defeated them in the group stage. He emphasized taking one game at a time and the importance of bowlers’ performances in Mumbai’s conditions.
“We have to take it one game at a time. It doesn’t matter if you won or lost your last game in a World Cup. What matters is who performs better on the day. We saw South Africa flying high. We saw them lose to Netherlands. They played brilliantly against England. We will prepare the way we usually prepare. We will try to play our best cricket and see where we are,” Shakib said.
“It is hard to win here if the bowlers don’t perform. The bowlers can win us games, which is usually the case here. There were a lot of runs in the first half here in the previous game. The ball did well in the second half. They are in a good position having won three out of their four games. We have five matches in hand, so if we win the match tomorrow, we will get into great momentum,” he added
Shakib expressed the team’s determination to win and keep their semi-final hopes alive, “Though we didn’t win many games, we are not in a bad position in the points table. We still harbour the dream (of playing the semi-final).”