Bangladesh’s performance in limited-overs cricket over the past year and a half has sparked concern among fans — and with good reason. The fear of losing a T20 series to an associate nation like the UAE is not without basis, especially after Bangladesh’s underwhelming performances in the first two matches in Sharjah. While the series is currently tied 1–1, the Tigers have failed to dominate, while the hosts have played with fearless intent. In tonight’s third and final T20, the UAE will aim to continue their aggressive approach, while Bangladesh will, as always, play to win — but fan anxiety stems from the team’s recent inconsistency.
Former national captains Raqibul Hasan and Minhajul Abedin Nannu have pointed to erratic bowling and poor fielding as key reasons for Bangladesh’s shock two-wicket loss in the second T20. Despite making four changes to the playing XI, the batting was impressive — with Tanzid Hasan Tamim scoring 59, Liton Das 40, and Towhid Hridoy contributing 45 to help the team post a commanding total of 205 runs in 20 overs. Still, the Tigers failed to defend the target, leaving many disheartened.
According to Raqibul Hasan, “We lost yesterday’s match because of three things — weak bowling, poor fielding, and poor decision-making. In cricket, tactical awareness and presence of mind are crucial. Bangladesh looked clueless at times. They threw unnecessarily, giving away four extra runs. They missed easy chances. At a time when bowling tightly was needed, they bowled no-balls.”
He continued, “You can’t win tight matches making so many mistakes. Yet, the match still went to the final over — and even then, we threw it away. Shariful’s throw was a massive error. He threw despite no backup in place. In the final over, with just 7 runs to defend, we bowled a no-ball and a wide. It was mindless cricket.”
This T20 series was intended to be part of Bangladesh’s preparations for their upcoming tour of Pakistan, but captain Liton Das and his team have not been able to play freely. Despite making his T20 debut, fast bowler Nahid Rana had a forgettable outing, conceding 50 runs in four overs. Another rising pace star, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, also failed to meet expectations.
But what stood out most were Shariful’s wild overthrows, Nahid’s missed run-out opportunity, and Hridoy’s casual fielding. Former chief selector Minhajul Abedin Nannu blamed the loss squarely on the fielding mistakes: “Scoring 205 in a T20 should be a match-winning effort. With proper bowling, this total should have been safe. You don’t expect the UAE to chase that down. Sadly, we couldn’t deliver with the ball or in the field. It’s quite embarrassing to lose to a side whose players work full-time jobs and only play cricket one day a week. Defeats like this send the wrong message.”
Nannu added, “When you play against associate teams, you must play serious cricket.”
There’s no doubt that Liton and his men will be looking to play serious, focused cricket in tonight’s decider — not just to win the series, but to gather momentum ahead of the high-stakes tour of Pakistan.
UA / TDS
