Previewing England’s Tour to Bangladesh

Tushar Parmar | 4:27am BST 11 October 2016

We may have only just got to the end of the county cricket season, but England are soon to embark on their much talked about tour of Bangladesh. With security concerns, certain players making themselves unavailable for selection, a new ODI captain for the tour and continuing questions about England’s ability to play spin in the sub-continent especially with a long trip to India around the corner, the tour looks set to be must-see cricket. In this post, we preview the tour and discuss the key talking points.

The Schedule

The tour of Bangladesh may only be short (3 ODIs and 2 tests), but controversy certainly hasn’t been in short supply (as we’ll discuss next). England’s fixtures on the tour are as follows:

• 30 September– England Team arrives Dhaka
• 4 October– Tour match, KSOAS Fatullah, Dhaka
• 7 October– First ODI (D/N), SBNCS, Dhaka
• 9 October– Second ODI (D/N), SBNCS, Dhaka
• 12 October– Third ODI (D/N), ZACS Chittagong
• 14-15 October– Tour match, M A Aziz, Chittagong
• 16-17 October– Tour match, M A Aziz, Chittagong
• 20-24 October– First Test, ZACS, Chittagong
• Fri 28 October-1 November– Second Test, SBNCS, Dhaka

Many of the England team are probably seeing this as an introduction to the sub-continent and preparation for the India tour that follows.

In these conditions, Bangladesh are to be underestimated at their peril, particularly in the shorter formats of the game.

Security

Much of the controversy around the tour stems from player security, with previous terror incidents in the country causing Australia to abandon their tour plans last year.

Back in July, 20 hostages died when a café was attacked in Dhaka, a city where England will play both ODI and test cricket in the coming months and there has also been instances of people being targeted and hacked to death by fundamentalist gangs.

However, after carrying out a specialist security review, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have confirmed that the tour will go ahead as planned.

But, due to ongoing concerns by some players, the ECB stated that each player could opt to not tour and make themselves unavailable for selection. England’s notorious fan group – The Barmy Army – will not be travelling over security fears. Which leads us on to selection…

Selection

In response, Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan made themselves unavailable for selection which, although allowed under the ECB directive, drew the ire of some ex-pros such as former England captain Michael Vaughan.

After an average to poor series against Pakistan, the place of Hales was already under question, and some see this as him taking himself out of the firing line. Whether he’s able to regain that position is now in serious doubt. The PCA’s Young Player of the Year and Player of the Year, Ben Duckett, and highly rated Lancashire batsman, Haseeb Hameed, have both been drafted into the squad as opening batters, if one of these scores runs, it’s more than likely that they will keep their place for the India tour.

Morgan’s absence is a bigger blow for England, as England have had to select a new ODI captain in the form of Jos Buttler.

In the bowling department, there was a surprise recall for Gareth Batty, who turns 39 in October and largely remembered for being in the firing line as Brian Lara struck his famous 400* at the Antigua Recreation Ground. He is one of four spinners and is joined in the squad by Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali and Zafar Ansari, who’ll be keen to make an impression following his unfortunate injury-induced withdrawal from England’s tour of Pakistan played in the UAE.

Spin is undoubtedly going to be the most prominent bowling factor, especially with the eyes on the India tour where Ashwin and Jadeja have been wreaking havoc over the Black Caps. However, England’s main strength: seam bowling, will still play a significant factor with the new ball and the older one which may reverse swing. Leader of the attack and England’s all-time leading wicket taker, Jimmy Anderson, has been ruled out by injury, although in recent years the attack has been able to step up in his absence, with an embarrassment of riches at disposal: Broad, Stokes, Finn, Wood and the newly reinvigorated Chris Woakes, pace bowling could still rattle some of the Bangladesh feathers.

Playing Spin

Whether England can beat Bangladesh depends on how well they can bowl and play spin. Sub-continent pitches like the ones found in Bangladesh do tend to turn a great deal, which explains why England have selected four spinners.

The Bangladeshi bowling unit will be effective on these pitches, so England will have to rely heavily on their techniques, particularly in the baking heat on day four and five pitches. On paper, the England team should be much stronger than Bangladesh’s, but these are alien conditions, and England will have to apply themselves well to beat an improving Bangladesh team. Recently the relatively inexperienced middle order has showed signs of frailty, the likes of Cook and Root will have to step up with the likes of Ballance, Bairstow and Stokes, especially if England wish to do well in India.

To conclude, England should be able to wrap up a comfortable series win in Bangladesh, but tough conditions will certainly make it a challenge. The main question that remains is: will Hales and Morgan ever regain their places? Only time will tell.

This article was put together with the help of Talent Cricket.