We are prepared to handle short balls – Tamim Iqbal
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|| CF Correspondent ||
Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal said that they are well aware that West Indian will come up with short balls tactics that they have followed so far in the tournament.
The left-handed batsman insisted they must make sure not to lose the opportunity of punishing the bad balls that had also been provided by their pacers on regular intervals along with the short ball.
West Indies took seven wickets with short or short-of-good-length deliveries against Pakistan and five against Australia. In the abandoned match against South Africa, both their wickets came courtesy short balls.
"We normally try to simulate in the nets what our opponents are likely to do. They usually target us with the short ball but they do the same against all sides in the first ten to 15 overs. They also give run-scoring opportunities. We have to prepare for both, that's why we are working hard in practice.
‘’We want to make sure it is not a surprise for us. We have an idea about their batsmen and bowlers, but I have noticed their different planning in the World Cup. It is not the same thing that we faced in Ireland or West Indies,’’ he said.
‘’They are focusing heavily on the short ball, but if you handle it well, there'll be opportunities to score runs. They have been bowling this way against all sides,’’ he said.
Tamim added that he still believe they are the favourites against West Indies on June 17 at Taunton as they have got some success against them in the recent past that includes beating them in the tri-nation final just ahead of the World Cup.
‘’Of course[ we are favourite], why not? We have won more than them in the recent past. In Ireland, we won all three matches against them. It does not matter to me who are favourites and who are not,’’ said Tamim.
‘’Cricket is such a game that whoever brings the A game has a chance on that particular day. That is the case for any team in this World Cup,’’ he said.
"It is not important who has that tag, it's about whoever plays well. If you see West Indies' first two matches, they looked a different side than what they were six months back. Then again, if you look at how we played our first two matches, we also looked a different side. We were challenging the top teams in these conditions. One went in our favour, one didn't. It will be a good match I think; we just need to see who brings the A game on the given day,’’ he said.
