23 March,2016 08:35 AM IST | | G Unnikrishnan
Rewind your memory to find Bangladesh victory over Australia in 2005 and India in the 2007 World Cup. Then those results were few and far between. But that's no longer the case
Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan addresses the media in Bangalore yesterday. Pic/PTI
Bangalore: Not so long ago, a Bangladesh win carried the tags of 'surprise' and 'upset' in international cricket. Rewind your memory to find Bangladesh victory over Australia in 2005 and India in the 2007 World Cup. Then those results were few and far between. But that's no longer the case.
Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan addresses the media in Bangalore yesterday. Pic/PTI
Bangladesh has transformed into a force to reckon with in the last few years, especially in the two limited over formats. Riding on a plethora of spinners, all-rounders and a set of competent batsmen, Bangladesh have begun to notch up wins at regular intervals in international cricket.
However, they have not really fired in the ongoing World T20, losing two successive matches against Pakistan and Australia. It has severely dented their hopes of progressing to the semi-finals. But former skipper and all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan kept his eyes on the positives such as the changing perception about Bangladesh cricket.
"Yes, mindset has certainly changed a lot through the last three or four years. Now, we know how to win. We have some good players. We have more contributors in the team. Previously there used to be only two or three guys. Now, there are four or five.
"These are the big changes. We are doing well as a team at home, and that gives us confidence when we play in different conditions. We are confident that we can do well," said Shakib.
'Top-order need to shine'
India have a good set of bowlers from R Ashwin to Jaspreet Bumrah and Ashish Nehra. Shakib said the Bangladesh batsmen will have to come up with a strong effort on today to register a win at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium and stay alive in the World T20.
"In the match against Australia, we scored only 30 in the first six overs. Normally, here in India, most teams score 45 to 50 runs in the Power Play. So, we need to improve on that against India. Batsmen who score runs should look and try to finish off the games as well. Then we will a see a difference," he noted.
'Can't take B'desh lightly'
India's left-arm pacer Ashish Nehra stressed the need to be on guard against Bangladesh. "We can't them lightly. The way Bangladesh have progressed in the last three-four years have been amazing. We will have to play to our potential to beat Bangladesh," he said.
Captains' wishlist
MS Dhoni India
> Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan provide a solid start
> Shakib Al Hasan has an off-day
> Pacer Mustafizur Rahman goes wicketless
Mashrafe Mortaza Bangladesh
> Opener Tamim Iqbal is fit to play
> Mahmudullah, Shakib provide an all-round show
> Virat Kohli is dismissed cheaply
