One of the 20 teams participating in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024 are Bangladesh. The much-anticipated marquee event will be getting underway this week with the game between USA and Canada and Dallas. The tournament will be played across the USA and the West Indies.
The competition will be a big opportunity for Bangladesh to enhance their reputation as one of the most improved sides in international cricket in recent years. The Bangla Tigers have been struggling to do well from the last few months and will be desperate to come up with a better performance in the forthcoming edition of the T20 World Cup.
For the 2024 T20 World Cup, Bangladesh are in Group D along with 2014 winners Sri Lanka, South Africa, Nepal and the Netherlands. With only two of the five teams progressing ahead of the group stage, Bangladesh need to be at their best to makes sure they qualify for the Super 8s stage.
The Najmul Hossain Shanto-led will begin its campaign on June 7 against bitter rivals Sri Lanka. Bangladesh recently lost a series against Sri Lanka at home and will be looking to avenge it.
It will be followed by the game against South Africa on June 10 before they face the Netherlands and Nepal on June 13 and 16 respectively. As Bangladesh gear up to begin their campaign in the ICC T20 World Cup, we are taking a look at their squad’s strength, weakness, opportunities and threat.
Bangladesh squad SWOT analysis:
Strength:
Mustafizur Rahman and Shakib Al Hasan:
In Mustafizur Rahman and Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh have got two world-class players who have consistently performed well at the highest stage. Apart from doing well in international cricket, the duo have done well in franchise cricket as well and Bangladesh will be relying on them heavily for a good outing in the T20 World Cup.
Mustafizur has the ability to change the course of the game at any stage. Not only can he make an impact with the new ball but he is also an impressive performer in the death overs. He has a fine yorker and slower ball in his arsenal and will be looking to make the most of it in the T20 World Cup.
In international cricket, the left-arm pacer has an impressive 120 wickets from 96 games. He recently picked up a career-best 6 for 10 against the USA and will be eyeing a similar performance in the World Cup.
Shakib, on the other hand, has been doing well on the international stage for more than a decade. One of the most decorated allrounders of this generation, Shakib has almost 2500 runs and 146 wickets in T20Is so far. The veteran allrounder will be eyeing another memorable outing in the World Cup.
Weakness:
Poor form of the top-order batters:
The form of Litton Das and Soumya Sarkar will be a big concern for Bangladesh. In T20Is, the openers often decide the fate of the game. A good performance in the powerplay could seal the fate of the team and Bangladesh will be hoping that the experienced batters get back to their best form in the T20 World Cup. Both the players have struggled for runs in recent times.
Litton, who has over 1800 runs in T20Is, has struggled for runs in recent games and his score in his last four T20I innings are – 1, 23, 12 and 14. Soumya’s form is not very promising either as he has registered scores of 41, 7, 20, 0 and 43* in his last 5 innings.
Lack of quality allrounders:
While Shakib Al Hasan is definitely a world-class allrounder, Bangladesh do not have a quality fast-bowling allrounder who can make match-winning impact with both bat and ball. Soumya Sarkar can bowl medium pace but he is not really known for his bowling exploits. Bangladesh do not have any reputed power-hitter in their squad as well and it could cost them big in the tournament.
Opportunities:
The last hurrah:
The T20 World Cup this year could be the last time Shakib Al Hasan participates in the competition. He is undoubtedly Bangladesh’s most decorated cricketer and would be desperate to finish on a good note. Another player who is likely to play the T20 World Cup for the last time is Mahmudullah.
The veteran batter had played some fine knocks in the ODI World Cup last year and would be eyeing a similar performance in the upcoming competition.
Read More: West Indies squad analysis for the ICC T20 World Cup
Threat:
Poor record in T20 World Cup:
While Bangladesh have done well in the ODI World Cup on a number of occasions, they have struggled in the T20 World Cup throughout. They are yet to get past the second round in the tournament and it could have a psychological effect on the team. In the last edition, they ended at the ninth spot after managing to win only 2 of the 5 games.
Low confidence:
Bangladesh will be entering the T20 World Cup low on confidence because of the shocking loss against USA in the recently-concluded three-match series. The Bangla Tigers lost the first two games before winning the third to avoid an embarrassing whitewash.
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Bangladesh squad for T20 World Cup 2024:
Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Taskin Ahmed, Litton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Shakib Al Hasan, Tawhid Hridoy, Mahmudullah Riyad, Jaker Ali Anik, Tanvir Islam, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib.
Travelling reserves: Afif Hossain, Hasan Mahmud
Bangladesh’s schedule:
- June 8: Bangladesh Vs Sri Lanka, Dallas – 6:00 AM IST
- June 10: Bangladesh Vs South Africa, New York – 8:00 PM IST
- June 13: Bangladesh Vs Netherlands, Kingstown – 8:00 PM IST
- June 17: Bangladesh Vs Nepal, Kingstown – 5:00 AM IST
