**Official** Bangladesh in West Indies

[Craig]

So unless your the next Malcolm Marshall, nobody is a certainty as a bowler in the Barbados side?

Still it is a great problem to have.

 

[garage flower]

And? Ian Bradshaw couldn't make the Barbados side this year. Dwayne Smith has struggled to make the Barbados side. Fidel Edwards, Vasbert Drakes, Corey Collymore have not been sure picks either.

Hasn't Suleiman Benn kept Hurley out on occasions? Huge left arm - I think? -offie. Looked pretty useful when I saw him at Headingley on the "A" tour - very hard to score off with the bounce he gets - but seems to have drifted out of international contention. Think he's had disciplinary and/or injury problems.

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

So unless your the next Malcolm Marshall, nobody is a certainty as a bowler in the Barbados side?

Still it is a great problem to have.

That's why they win. Ultimately, bowlers win matches.

 

[roseboy64]

Also, good captaincy.Some teams missed that this year.Daren Ganga a captain since when?And over Lara when he came back?

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

It really wouldn't have made any sense to have Lara captain the T&T team. He's not exactly being groomed to be the next West Indies captain. He already is and he only has 4-5 years left at international level, so they might as well let someone else get some work in. The mistake T&T made IMO is bringing in Ganga for Imran Jan. We only had one bad game under Jan and that's the only loss we had had for the season until that point.

IMO Robert Samuels is the best captain in the region, whether he's playing cricket or not these days, he's still got the best cricketing mind of captaincy candidates. He was also unfairly treated by the WI selectors as a batsman.

 

[Craig]

Well he certainly isn't any worse then having Dwayen Smith or Ryan Hinds.

 

[roseboy64]

He's actually my coach.He doesn't really mind being sacked as much as people would think.At least now he can pay more attention to his players and help them better.He's kind of apathetic towards WI cricket sometimes.Actually he said that Dwayne Smith couldn't bat when he made that century against South Africa but now he looks more like a batsman.

 

[garage flower]

Pedro Collins strikes with the first ball of the series, with what sounds like a typical (New Improved) Pedro dismissal - the ball swinging in to trap the right-hander LBW.

Eccentric team selection from Bangladesh with Alamgir Kabir, who by all accounts (well, CricInfo's) is a fairly innocuous medium-pacer, included and the two left-arm spinners who bowled well in the 1-dayers (Rana, Rafique) left out.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

35/1 atm - scoreboard claims Rafique is playing in place of Alamgir Kabir, which would make a lot of sense as he's about their only decent bowler. Faisal Hossain will make his test debut today, after 17 in the slog-fest at Grenada.

To me, it seems like Javed Omar is struggling a bit, although he seems to be finding his game now. Doubt he'll last much longer than 25, still.

Edit: Adding a radio link with a lot of commercials, but they seem to confirm that Rafique is playing in place of Kabir.

 

[Adamc]

Bangladesh are giving the home side a hard time at the moment. Habibul Bashar just brought up his half-century with a four off Edwards. Bashar has 58* from just 72, Omar a more circumspect 27* from 70. Rajin Saleh and Mohd. Ashraful are both in good form, so it could be quite a hard match for the Windies.

 

[Neil Pickup]

Come on boys!

The rest of the Bangladeshi side:
Rajin Saleh - solid right-hander
Mohammad Ashraful - talented young right-hander, prone to getting self out
Faisal Hossain - young left-hander - only played once in the the 3rd ODI
+Khaled Mashud - experienced keeper, decent batsman
Mushfiqur Rahman - bats like Mark Richardson, decent seamer
Mohammad Rafique - arguably the best left-arm spinner in the World right now
Tapash Baisya - most experienced of the three seamers
Tareq Aziz - latest occupant of the third seamer's musical chair

 

[Adamc]

Manjural Islam Rana - arguably the second best left-arm spinner in the world right now

 

[Neil Pickup]

Manjural Islam Rana - arguably the second best left-arm spinner in the world right now

Isn't playing, because a third seamer was required.

 

[Adamc]

Isn't playing, because a third seamer was required.

I know, just pointing that left-arm spin is in such a state that two Bangladeshis are arguably its greatest current exponents.

 

[tooextracool]

Come on boys!

The rest of the Bangladeshi side:
Rajin Saleh - solid right-hander
Mohammad Ashraful - talented young right-hander, prone to getting self out
Faisal Hossain - young left-hander - only played once in the the 3rd ODI
+Khaled Mashud - experienced keeper, decent batsman
Mushfiqur Rahman - bats like Mark Richardson, decent seamer
Mohammad Rafique - arguably the best left-arm spinner in the World right now
Tapash Baisya - most experienced of the three seamers
Tareq Aziz - latest occupant of the third seamer's musical chair

you make it sound as though that side is more than capable of beating australia!

 

[superkingdave]

Tareq Aziz - latest occupant of the third seamer's musical chair

Quite a career change from being a foregn minister

Looks a good pitch, that pull shot just before lunch looked so easy.

 

[Neil Pickup]

you make it sound as though that side is more than capable of beating australia!

It is!

 

[Neil Pickup]

Omar (31) falls to Collins, loose-ish drive to a wide one outside off and well caught by Devon Smith at gully.

120-2. Habibul unbeaten on 78*..

 

[superkingdave]

Century for Bashar, fastest ever for Bangladesh in tests

 

[Neil Pickup]

It's only the sixth by a Bangladeshi!

Last two times that he's made a ton, he's been dismissed by a spinner on 108.

Give the ball to Chris Gayle?