DHAKA, Feb 21, 2020 (BSS)- Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo made it clear that pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman won’t be the part of the side’s fist
XI in the one-off Test against Zimbabwe at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket
Stadium tomorrow (Saturday).
According to him, Mustafizur Rahman is yet to get the skill right to play
the Test cricket, as he has some technical glitches.
“I don’t think Mustafiz is ready to play the Test matches until he does
some technical work which allows him to bring the ball back in to the right-
handed batsman,” Domingo said here on Friday.
The South African said Mustafizur Rahman was included in the squad to give
him the opportunity to work with the new bowling coach Ottis Gibson.
“Getting him back in to the squad is the start of that process so that he
can work with our new bowling coach. He was put back in to the squad, but not
to play in my opinion but to train, get some shape back and get a connection
with Ottis, develop a bit of trust, a bit of relationship and stay with the
team,” he added.
“Mustafiz is not playing this Test match. The next five days he is going to
be bowling every day, trying to make sure he gets his shape that is required
because that could help him in Test cricket and white ball cricket.”
Since his landmark debut in an ODI series against India in 2015, Mustafizur
remains the integral part of Bangladesh cricket in all three formats. Even
though his skill for Test cricket is questioned right from the start, the
lack of new ball bowlers meant, he was kept retaining for every Test.
However, his performance went down across the format once he was undergoing
a shoulder operation after which he never did well in any format of cricket.
His stock weapons cutter, slower that gave him so much success also looked
diminished, prompting the team management warn him to work on new weapons and
develop skills more.
“At the moment I can’t see him playing Test match cricket and I’ve told him
that. Until he improves technically and gets the ball to swing and get it to
come back in to the right hander,” Domingo said.