Why Bangladesh cricketers often let their country down on and off the ground

Dinesh Karthik’s last-ball six on Sunday, March 18, won India a nail-biting final against Bangladesh and the diminutive wicket-keeper batsman certainly finished the tournament on a high, especially ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 11 in which he would play as a full-fledged captain. But on the other side, the story of the Bangladeshi cricket team in the just concluded Nidahas Trophy 2018 was no less eye-catching.

The Tigers crossed all limits of decency in their virtual semi-final against Sri Lanka which though they won but lost all respect in the eyes of the cricket lovers – so much so that the Sri Lankan spectators came out with a clear support for India in the final.

From showing dissent against the umpire’s decision to arguing with opponent players to threatening to pull out the team from the field to smashing glasses of the dressing room – the Bangladeshi players engaged in all sorts of unsporting activities. And then they went on to lose the fifth final of a tournament featuring more than two teams – be it in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) or Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).

More than luck, it’s Bangladesh’s inability to handle pressure

For many supporters of the Men in Green, their luck hasn’t been clicking. They lost to Sri Lanka in a 50-over final in 2009 after reducing them to six for five; lost to Pakistan by 2 runs in the final of the Asia Cup in 2012 and now conceded a last-ball six to India in a game which they looked favourites to win till the last two overs. Close losses no doubt but more than luck, Bangladesh’s defeats are caused more by their nervous tensions at key moments.

Quality teams and their players hold on to their nerves to win turning points in a game. Bangladesh clearly lost out at those key moments to eventually lose the game. In the final versus India, Bangladeshi captain Shakib Al Hasan was seen rubbing his face with a towel while Karthik’s onslaught was on. The nervousness that was reflecting on the captain’s face didn’t give a positive message to his players. Cricket is as good a mind game as a physical one and these little things do count much.

One suspects the Bangladeshis are too impulsive with their game. They fail to rein in their nerves and while in times of victory, the Tigers yet do well, they let everybody down including their country when things do not go in their favour. Shakib is Bangladesh’s most experienced player in ODIs and the third-most experienced player in T20Is but his conduct in the game against Sri Lanka where he threatened to call his team back from the ground and allegedly smashed glasses in the dressing room didn’t give the impression that he and his team are mature enough to handle pressure situations.

Bangladesh have an ordinary sporting spirit

Another poor aspect of Bangladesh’s cricket culture is its lack of sporting spirit. Many a time, it has been seen that right from the common supporters to top cricketing officials to even the prime minister of the country – the Bangladeshis do not take their game sportingly, even when they win.

After they lost to India in the quarter-final of the 2015 World Cup in Adelaide, Bangladesh created a major uproar blaming everybody they found for the defeat. It is true that India’s centurion in that game Rohit Sharma benefited from a controversial decision by the umpire but it is part and parcel of cricket and no team in the world has their luck going every day. But Bangladesh went on and on with even the president of the International Cricket Council, Mustafa Kamal, lambasting the top cricketing body and quitting from it to show solidarity with his country. The Bangladeshi prime minister also said later that Bangladesh lost that game due to bad umpiring.

In 2015, a frontline Bangladeshi newspaper carried an advertisement showing their young bowler Mustafizur Rahman posing with a cutter while members of the Indian cricket team standing with their heads half shaved. The adverstiment, which was criticised for its ordinary taste, came soon after Bangladesh defeated India 2-1 in a ODI series at home.

In 2016, similarly, ahead of the final of Asia Cup in Dhaka, a morphed photo of Bangladeshi fast bowler Taskin Ahmed holding the severed head of India’s the then limited-over captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni had left many disgusted.

In the same month, Bangladeshi wicketkeeper-batsman Mushfiqur Rahim made the headlines for wrong reasons during the World T20 after India lost the semi-final against the West Indies in Mumbai. Rahim tweeted saying his happiness lied in India’s loss. The wicketkeeper’s emotions were driven by the fact that his own side had gifted a game to India by just one run in the same tournament and he could not stomach it and hence he found a solace in the Caribbeans’ victory over the hosts.

Bangladesh can hire sports psychologists to make their cricketers mature and stronger

These are not mature gestures – whether by the players, officials, supporters, media or even the top leadership. All of them need to be aware of their expressions in the wake of unfavourable results. They need to remind their players that misbehaving while playing leaves a permanent scar that can’t be erased by wins. And for that, the supporters and officials themselves need to behave with maturity first.

Cricket has its ups and downs but to cross all borders both when you win (the Mustafizur advertisement) and lose (the other instances) let yourself down as revered ambassadors of your country. Bangladesh is a fast developing country which is accomplishing a great many feats in various fields. Their cricketers should learn to keep pace with those achievements to do a favour to their homeland’s reputation on the international stage.

If required, their board should appoint a psychologist to teach them ways on how to handle things – something even India’s iconic players have done in the past (remember Sandy Gordon?). The Shakibs and Mushfiqurs should also talk to former greats who have handled pressure moments to scale the heights in their career.

As of now, Bangladesh are playing good cricket but they are still miles behind in lifting their minds up from mediocrity.

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