National cricketers Anamul Haque and Soumya Sarkar played together for Bangladesh in the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Australia two years back. The duo are set to feature in another world event, this time in the most prestigious cricket competition of them all – the ICC 50-over World Cup in Australia-New Zealand.
With the World Cup just around the corner, both the cricketers have targeted a spot in the second round, if given the opportunity to strut their stuff. The two batsmen revealed their objectives to the media at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday following practice.
Anamul started out by saying he will look to continue his recent run of good form.
“Every batsman or bowler has some plans. We all have goals to play well. I have played the home series against Zimbabwe and the away series against the West Indies where I think I performed fairly with the bat,” said Anamul.
“The experiences have bolstered my confidence level. As an additional expectation, I want to familiarise myself more by scoring big in a mega event like the World Cup,” he added.
Anamul believes that in order to meet the Tigers’ primary aim of reaching the second round, the two-week training camp in Brisbane will be crucial.
Following the conclusion of the bilateral series at home against Zimbabwe last month, the national cricketers availed some much-needed match-practice in the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League. Anamul thinks the experiences gathered by playing in the country’s lone 50-over domestic competition will serve as good preparation for the World Cup.
“The wickets in the Premier League were good and we played five games that were very important for our World Cup preparation. In addition, we have some practice matches up ahead in Australia before the start of the World Cup. Hopefully, there will be no lack of preparation,” said the wicketkeeper-batsman.
Anamul also explained in details the uses of a newly-introduced gadget in the Tigers’ camp, a “stone-slab”.
“The ball skids a bit and comes onto the bat in the Australian wickets. Because of this, we are using ‘stone-slab’ during practice. In this way, we can adjust with the wicket. On bouncy wickets, balls skid more during the initial stages of batting. The practice will therefore benefit us to adjust with the Australian conditions,” concluded the 22-year old cricketer from Kushtia.
One of the newbies in the Bangladesh dressing room, Soumya, meanwhile, stated that he is working on the short ball which is said to be one of his weaknesses. The 21-year old cricketer said he is practising with tennis and plastic balls to nullify the threat of the short ball.
“In order to tackle the short ball I have already started practising. We will practise in the upcoming days too. We will even get the chance to play some practice matches in Australian conditions before the World Cup. I think it is possible to overcome my weakness through practice,” said Soumya.
“To make myself habituated with the short ball, I have been practising with the tennis ball and a sort of plastic ball,” he informed.
Soumya’s inclusion in the Tigers’ World Cup squad as a seamer-allrounder had raised quite a few eyebrows given the fact that he rarely bowled in domestic and international cricket in recent times. When queried if there are confusions surrounding his role, Soumya said, “When I have the bat in hand, I think of myself as a batsman and when I have a ball I think I am a bowler. In those conditions I will try to do well whenever I get the opportunity to perform.”
The Satkhira cricketer’s pace is also an area of concern but he informed that it is currently being taken care of by pace-bowling coach Heath Streak. “It’s true that there is not much pace in my bowling. So, Heath advised me to bowl at the right areas and release as many slower deliveries as possible,” he said.
Soumya also added that he is ready to bat in any position for the benefit of the team.
