Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad got a chance in the Champions Trophy team based on their experience. However, they could not shine with the bat. On the other hand, these two experienced Tiger batters had to face criticism for playing bad shots at the team’s bad times.
Former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer has harshly criticized the failure of the Bangladesh team’s seniors. He directly highlighted the fact that the seniors of the Bangladesh team cannot perform in ICC events. However, Jaffer has left out Shakib from this list.
He also cited Shakib’s aesthetic performance in the 2019 World Cup as an example. According to Jaffer, we have probably only seen Shakib in the 2019 ODI World Cup, where he was an exceptional performer. I don’t know if this is due to pressure or if they (Bangladesh’s senior cricketers) themselves take on extra pressure, as if they cannot perform properly.
Speaking on the ESPN Cricinfo Match Day program about Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur’s shot selection, he said, “The shot selection was very disappointing. The shot that Mushfiqur played, that unaccounted shot by Mahmudullah—it was a life-or-death match. In such matches, you want them to come forward and play to win the team. But unfortunately, this has become the story of Bangladesh in ICC events.
The bell for Bangladesh’s exit from the Champions Trophy has already rung. The Tigers have been knocked out of the first two matches of the three group stage matches. The entire responsibility for this falls on the shoulders of the batters.
In the first match, a telling score came against India thanks to the help of Towhid Hridoy and Zaker Ali Anik. Then in the second match against New Zealand, captain Nazmul Hossain Shanto and that Zaker Ali took control. Jaffer believes that Bangladesh fell short by at least 50 to 60 runs in Rawalpindi.
He said that 300-plus runs could have been easily scored on that pitch. Bangladesh’s batsmen should blame themselves. It is asking too much of the bowlers to bowl out New Zealand for less than 240 runs.
