Bangladesh hope to out-spin England

DHAKA: Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim is banking on his spinners to inflict maximum damage against England’s attack in the second Test at Dhaka on Friday.

The hosts’ spin trio of Mehedi Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan and Taijul Islam combined to take 18 out of 20 wickets in the first test at Chittagong, but England eked out a thrilling 22-run victory despite the collapse of their top order.

Rain could play a factor in Dhaka, and Mushfiqur anticipates that any moisture in the wicket will help his threepronged spin attack.

“The wicket is mostly prepared but if the sun was out today, it would have dried up further,” he said. “If there’s a bit of moisture, the ball would be gripping on the surface for the spinners. Their spinners don’t have to attack because of their pace bowlers. For us, the spinners are the main weapon. They have to attack and take the wickets.

ROOM TO IMPROVE

“I think in that sense, our spinners are ahead of them. They are natural at bowling with the new and old ball, defensive or aggressively. But I would still say that our spinners have room for improvement.”

The skipper said his side’s narrow defeat still rankled, but appeared determined to use the disappointment as a driving force to secure what would be a famous win against England.

“We are still hurting from the loss in Chittagong so it is best to move on from that game,” he added.

“We know that had we given one percent more, the test would have been in our favour. We would like to take the positives from that game, and use them in Dhaka.”