Other teams don’t miss the chances that we are missing: Shakib

Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan expressed his frustration over missing so many chances in the second and final Test against India, which they eventually lost by three wickets, despite being so close to win it at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium today.

The Tigers also conceded a 188-run defeat in the first Test in Chattogram, which meant they were swept in two-match Test series before winning the three-match ODI series by 2-1.

Dropping catches are not new for Bangladesh at least in longer version format and the Mirpur Test was no different one.

Bangladesh dropped at least three catches and an easy stumping while Mominul Haque dropped a regulation catch of Ravichandran Ashwin at short-leg at the crunch moment of the game when India were reduced to 80-7. Ashwin who was on 1, went on to score 42 not out and led the side to a victory, accompanied by Shreyas Iyer (29 not out) from the jaws of defeat.

"It is slightly disappointing (missing catches). Other teams don't miss the chances that we are missing. That made the difference. We could have bowled them out for 250 instead of 314 (in the first innings). There was a chance in the second innings, but it is part of cricket," Shakib said here today after Bangladesh’s defeat in four days.

"We fielded well in the T20 World Cup. We fielded well in the ODI series, but we couldn't do it in the Test match. Maybe due to lack of concentration or fitness," he said.

He went on saying: "We have to find out how to better concentrate for longer, and avoid making mistakes. Other teams don't give so many opportunities. We miss regulation stuff. Our bowlers have to create 13-14 chances to take 10 wickets. Other teams have to create nine chances to take 10 wickets.”

But Shakib hailed the team’s overall performance, saying that the improvement is visible as they have been able to take the Test close at home and abroad for some years now.

The ace allrounder credited the Indian lower-order for handling the pressure so well despite his team’s superb performance.

"I think Ashwin and Iyer both batted well on a pitch that wasn't easy. Credit to them. I think we tried in every way. We fell slightly short, somehow. There's no regret. I think we fought well in the whole Test. If we continue having this mentality in future Tests, we will get better results,” he said.

"There's regret not winning a close match but at least we are getting close. Hopefully next year there'll be a better result next year. We have 3-5 Tests in 2023. I expect to win all three series, considering the teams we will be playing," he remarked.

As Bangladesh will play more Test matches in the next FTP cycle, Shakib insisted on arranging more first class matches in the domestic circuit, which he thought is the only way to improve the Test culture. But the true fact is that Shakib himself didn’t play first class matches on a regular basis.

Bangladesh will play five Test matches in 2023 respectively against Ireland, Afghanistan and New Zealand and all of them are home fixtures.

"We need to introduce more first-class matches to do seriously well in Tests. A player with 50-70 first-class matches is a lot different than someone who has played 8 or 10 first-class matches,” Shakib said.

“I am sure most of the Indian players have more than 100 first-class matches under their belt. I don't play domestic cricket for a long time, but even those who are playing, how many do they play? They will need 10 years to reach 80 first-class matches. If we could have done that in five years, we may have better Test players," he concluded.