Bangladesh Test captain Mominul Haque said he has never imagined observing the world in such crisis that is being caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. With all cricket activities suspended due to the growing concern of cornavirus in the country, Mominul is passing anxious times at his home in Dhaka and keep himself and family locked behind doors.
“I have never thought of such situation in my life. It is honestly very boring but you know it is important for us to remain safe at home and follow the instructions from the government and health ministry. To keep myself busy I do a bit of shadow and work on my fitness as much as possible but all at home,” said Mominul to the media on Monday.
#Mashrafe urges people to stay at homehttps://t.co/XKYD8ssM4T
— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) March 23, 2020
Mominul since given charge in 2019 has led Bangladesh in four Tests and has won only one – against Zimbabwe at home recently. Leading a team in the longest format of the game is a challenge by itself and the job gets many times harder if it is in Bangladesh – given the off field tensions that one captain has to deal with.
Mominul informed despite the challenge he is enjoying the role and emphasized on having the right chain of command.
#Coronavirus: #Bangladesh tour of #Ireland postponed https://t.co/7s95n5JHF6
— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) March 21, 2020
“Not everyone is able to take the challenges and honestly, I am enjoying this. It’s important to have the right chain of command in the leadership as I think everything depends on the captain in cricket,” said Mominul.
“It has to come from inside that this is my team and I need to do everything to make things right. I am sure things will change and it is important for the players to have that belief in them,” the left handed batsman added.
Before setting any target as a captain, Mominul first wants to work on the team building a culture and mindset for the longest format of the game. Bangladesh in past few years have taken big leaps of development in cricket but that has come more in limited overs. Bangladesh still suffers in Test conceding innings defeat the most recent coming against Pakistan in Lahore earlier this year.
“I haven’t thought about it as we are now focusing on our attitude towards Test cricket. We are trying to develop a good culture where previously we used to do well in one session but later went on to throw it away like the lower rank sides. Suppose normally we play well in the first innings but can’t replicate that in the second innings with the bat so my aim is to bring the consistency in the team,” Mominul explained.
#Coronavirus: #Hockey federation closes office https://t.co/0Snf3bdRLs
— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) March 22, 2020
“We have won Test match against big sides at home in the past but we never won a series. So my goal will be to win a series against big teams. I would also want to win matches away from home as previously we tended to draw a Test match when we go abroad. I think if we are able to beat a big side at their home it will give a massive boost and belief to the players,” he said.
