Winning is the only tonic

A smiling Anamul Haque (C) shares a light moment with his teammates during the Tigers' training session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur yesterday. The right-hander has been the lone consistent performer for Bangladesh in the on-going ICC World T20. Photo: Firoz Ahmed

A verse from a poem of poet Sunil Ganguly --“this Bangladesh, in its depressing glow” -- can be relevant to describe the present state of the Bangladesh cricket team. The sufferings of daily life -- the agonising political instability and a host of other problems -- were believed to have taken a back seat with the hosting of the ICC World Twenty20 and the afternoons and evenings of the last few days provided pure entertainment through individual brilliance and nerve-wracking contests among the world's best cricketing nations.
For the home fans however the tournament has so far fallen short of a true festival due to the poor performances of their beloved Tigers. Expectations were not sky-high with the home side but the faith was there that the home team would at least put up a fight to make the occasion a memorable one for the hosts – after all it was the cricket team that in the not-too-distant past united the nation in celebration.
While pundits are pointing out the many flaws in approach of the Tigers in all three departments in the miserable performances of the year till date, the general public is not only irritated but also searching for answers: what actually happened with this team which only recently made great strides, especially at home?  
Whatever the answer may be, that the team's thought processes are muddled seem certain.
All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan's words ahead of today's clash against Pakistan in the pre-match press conference at Mirpur yesterday was far removed from the Shakib the public has come to know, who always loved to challenge the big sides. It was not same old bold Shakib when he was talking about his team's chances against Pakistan. The string of crushing defeats seems to have taken a toll.
On one hand he said that they have fulfilled their target by qualifying for the second round and a win in the second round will be a satisfactory one, on the other hand he said the pressure is off as they have almost no hope of qualifying for the semifinal, which will help them to play their natural game. It was not the sentiment of a team that not long ago were fond of saying they were capable of beating any team in the world.
Shakib believed that their performance was not too bad while also saying that if they were able to play their best cricket then the current problems in the team would not have existed. He also revealed that every player is disappointed and frustrated.
The former skipper also said there was something wrong in the team's processes and they must follow the right process to play their best cricket in the next two games, where they have nothing to lose. He also said that he would prefer to bat at number three, having come in at number four in the last two games.
Only a win can bring back confidence and normalcy, as well as smiles on a million faces. Can it happen today? Shakib said it was difficult, but surely not impossible as he believes that the beauty of T20 cricket is that a team can make a turnaround at anytime.