T20I skipper Litton Das is now lacking confidence, and the squad is working to assist him get back on track before the second T20I match against Sri Lanka in Dambulla on Sunday, July 13, according to Bangladesh head coach Phil Simmons. After winning the first match by a comfortable seven-wicket margin, Sri Lanka now leads the three-match series 1-0.
After failing to reach a half-century in his past 17 international innings in both ODIs and T20Is, Litton Das has been going through a difficult time.
In June 2024, he returned to limited-overs cricket with his final fifty. After a first-ball duck in the first game of that series, he was removed from the ODI XI, and he was only able to score six runs in the first T20I.
His confidence seems a little lacking, in my opinion. We are aware of his capabilities. We’re putting a lot of effort into helping him reach that point. Prior to the impending encounter, Simmons stated, “Hopefully he can get there in the next match,” as reported by Cricbuzz.
Simmons said that closer to the second game, a definitive decision about Jaker Ali, who missed the first T20I because of a quad injury, would be made. The team management chose not to take that chance, despite Jaker’s apparent desire to participate and his potential inclusion in the starting lineup had he been cleared to take wickets. Additionally, he justified the choice to start four openers in the opening game, arguing that it was a calculated move based on the requirements and circumstances of the club.
Prior to the third ODI, Jaker sustained an injury. We will assess his condition tonight and decide on his status tomorrow. Tonight, we’ll see what transpires. The former cricket player went on to say, “We will observe the wicket and decide whether we want to stick with the same squad or make a change.”
“People must observe what is taking place. Who else will we play there since Jaker was hurt? Among the bowlers? People must be practical. In Jaker’s place, we had to play a batter. In this format, adaptation is crucial. Gamers must adjust. Openers occasionally play at number five or six in this style. The next strategy is to improve on the areas where we performed poorly in the previous game. In the first six (overs), we need to bowl better and score more runs. To be competitive with them, we must get better at some things at specific levels. We want to accomplish that,” he continued.
With constant practice, we became better at fielding: Chandana
Upul Chandana, the fielding coach for Sri Lanka, recognised that the team’s excellent on-field results are the consequence of constant repetition and concentrated practice. He pointed out that the Bangladeshi team is under more pressure because of Sri Lanka’s excellent fielding throughout the series.
“If you look at 2023, we need to get better at fielding. After analysis, we determined that we needed to improve in a few areas. For example, we increased repetition and worked on our fitness. The secret is confidence. Players are sure they can do things today because we do a lot of repetitions. They stay in the game until the very end,” he remarked.
“We now spend roughly 40 minutes fielding, compared to 20 minutes in the past. Getting the most out of our quick bowlers was our biggest obstacle. They put up a lot of effort. The team has greatly benefited from that. One of the reasons we have performed well in fielding is because they are giving it their all,” the fielding coach continued.
As a team, Chandana makes development in Lanka.
Chandana praised the players’ dedication and attitude while pointing out the team’s improvement in fielding. “Fielding brings satisfaction and allows everyone to contribute,” he added. Despite their recent victory at Pallekele, he also underlined the importance of not underestimating the opposition.
“We have several talented field players. Together, we are making progress. Right now, we’re in a better place than we were. The player’s dedication was the reason for that. The key to fielding is mindset. Bowlers are able to make runs. A poor score might result in a batter being ejected. However, anyone can help out when fielding. We have informed them that they should enjoy this task. If they have fielded well and are all giving it their all, players can feel good at the conclusion of the game,” he said.
At Pallekele, we played well. For us, Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka were fantastic. They started us off well. We performed well as a team in all three disciplines, and we are ready to take on tomorrow’s match. We anticipate that they will put up a strong fight to level the series because they are a solid team. We’re working to improve on our performance from the last game,” the former Sri Lankan player said.
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