The division between approaching a match with confidence and a slight dose of overconfidence is a thin line, and Bangladesh paid a heavy price for setting foot on the field armoured with the latter. If there is one area that Dav Whatmore has to work on with his boys, it is their ability to handle the new ball when conditions are in favour of the bowlers.
To begin with, Bangladesh found the newly attached 'favourites' tag too hot to handle. One could sense the new found Asian hope putting pressure on themselves. The last 10 overs of the Irish innings were the part of the match where Bangladesh lost the plot. If they had restricted the target to less than 225, the pressure of a climbing asking rate would have never been felt.
There was a touch of complacency in the way Bangladesh played the match and it reflected in the fielding. They wasted far too many opportunities and let the Irish get away. The knock by Porterfield was worth its weight in gold. The opener saw off the difficult phase with a gutsy display when the conditions had a lot on offer to the fast men. Runs flowed after the 150-run mark was reached and the 93 runs that came in the final 11.3 overs proved to be the decisive factor in the final analysis.
The chase was never on. Less than five runs per over does not require slam bang cricket but batsmen like Ashraful of whom a lot was expected continued to be reckless with their selection of shots. The intent was clearly missing, The rule book does not say all the runs have to be acquired in boundaries. The singles and twos were conveniently forgotten. Ireland fully deserve their place in the ICC ODI table. Beating two test-playing nations is not an easy task for a country that has not met opposition of this quality before.
The match today looks to be the dress rehearsal for the final. The Aussies must be wary of the fact the Grenada wicket is slightly on the slower side and anything above 250 to chase on a strip that is slowing down, the world champs will have their hands full.
This match may not have much consequence in relation to the semifinal line up. But if the Lankans are to emerge victorious today they would carry an enormous amount of psychological advantage in to the knock outs. The islanders also have a decent track record against the Australians in crunch games and there has been enough indications lately to believe they would give Ponting and his men a run for their money.
2 comments:
Krish,
I was talking to myslef before the game.Who is better ? Bangladesh or Ireland ?
Bangladesh played many international games than Ireland.since Ireland is underdog, Banglas will feel the pressure of winning.This match was a test for Bangladesh about how much they have progressed.As you said Bangladesh fell asusual like the other sub continent cricket teams not able to play in pressured situations.I felt that Bangladesh chances in this game finished when Ashraful got out.I hoped that Bashar will play a captain's knock today.This will be a good lesson learnt for our Bangla neighbours and they have a very long promising career in their hands to learn or loose.
-Kalyan
krish,
I would beg to differ with you. According to me bangladesh didnt lose the match because of complacency but due to the enormous amount of pressure. This has been the biggest problem with all the sub continent teams this season. They get themselves under pressure thinking what will happen if i lose this match?? This caused the downfall of india and pakistan. Where as teams like ireland have no pressure what so ever on them. They just enjoy their game in the middle and there are no expectations from them and winning is a boost. I can already cite three examples for this scenario in this world cup
1. Ind Vs Ban
2. Ire Vs Pak
3. Ind Vs SL
4. Ban Vs Ire
I have added India SL match because SL was already through to super 8 so they were under no pressure whatsoever but India had to do everything possible in the match.
Post a Comment