Published 14:33 IST, November 9th 2019
Mahmudullah had a hint of MS Dhoni in his captaincy: Irfan Pathan
Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah Riyad's captaincy has traits of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership, feels former India seamer Irfan Pathan
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Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah Riyad's captaincy has traits of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership, feels former India seamer Irfan Pathan. The Mahmudullah-led Bangladesh defeated India in the series opener last week to register its first-ever T20 win over the hosts. "When you win a match against one of the best teams in the world, it helps in boosting your confidence and Mahmudullah had shown great qualities of a captain including the changes he made during the match," Irfan Pathan said during the 'Nerolac Cricket Live' show on Star Sports.
"There was a hint of Mahendra Singh Dhoni in his captaincy as he also used part-time bowlers after the power play which is a strategy often used by Dhoni," Irfan Pathan added.
However, Bangladesh couldn't hold on to the winning momentum as Indian cantered to a massive series leveling eight-wicket win in the second T20 in Rajkot. Both the teams will now look to seal the series when they take on each other in the final T20 in Nagpur on Sunday. Bangladesh failed to capitalize on a good start with the bat posting a sub-par target of 154. Senior off-spinner Harbhajan Singh said the onus will be on wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim to lead the side with the bat in the series decider.
"Mushfiqur Rahim is a player with a lot of experience, his ability to play both spin and pace bowling is great and he has the maximum responsibility in the Bangladesh squad in terms of batting which gives him an edge over Mahmudullah, who is also a good player for the Bangladesh team," Harbhajan said.
The Decider
India are expected to seal the series on Sunday but one can expect Bangladesh to spring another surprise like they did in Delhi despite the absence of their key players -- Tamim Iqbal and the suspended Shakib Al Hasan.They made a decent start to their innings on Thursday in Rajkot before losing way to end up with a below-par 153. Most of their batsmen have looked in good touch and there is little doubt that they will be itching to make an impact in the series decider.The stand out performer for them has been 20-year-old leggie Aminul Islam who has taken four wickets so far without giving away too many runs. It was not a surprise that captain Mahmudullah was all praise for him after the second game.However, Bangladesh pacers need to do better, especially their premier bowler Mustafizur Rahman who has surprisingly failed to trouble the Indian batsmen.
14:26 IST, November 9th 2019