The Bangladesh Cricket Board revealed a 15-man roster for the forthcoming T20 World Cup 2022 on Wednesday (September 14) in the late afternoon. Mahmudullah Riyad's exclusion and Najmul Hossain Shanto's inclusion in the World Cup team are the two main discussion points. In addition, the World Cup setup contained all the anticipated names. Let's look at the SWOT analysis of Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup 2022 squad.
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup 2022 team
The players who have recently competed for Bangladesh in the Twenty20 International series are taken into account for the forthcoming eighth T20 World Cup in Australia. Veteran all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan will lead the team in the main event.
Mushfiqur Rahim’s retirement announcement from the T20 format made the task easy for the selectors. The cricket board was in doubt over picking Mahmudullah Riyad for the tournament. They ultimately decided to go with Najmul Hossain and Yasir Ali on the team in place of Mahmudullah for the World Cup campaign.
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The social media platforms roared with Mahmudullah's omission from the squad. The majority of them have welcomed the BCB’s decision to exclude the veteran cricketer from the World Cup squad. A small portion of the Bangladesh supporters, though, haven’t liked the idea of a Bangladesh T20 World Cup team without Riyad. Only time will tell whether Mahmudullah’s exclusion was a timely decision or not. One thing is confirmed, that the Bangladesh Cricket Board wanted to give the young players a chance even though most of their recent performances haven’t been so impressive.
Among the young players, Najmul Hossain Shanto’s inclusion is a surprising one. Shanto has a BPL hundred, but his overall record hasn’t been impressive either. Then how did he make the squad? According to the chief selector, Najmul Hossain Shanto has the potential to play aggressive innings and was included as a backup opener.
But it is widely considered that Najmul Hossain was selected based on his age and his batting technique. The left-handed opener will likely open the innings by partnering with Litton Das. This will be another great opportunity for Najmul to showcase his talent on a big platform, and he should better seize the opportunity.
Read BCB announces Bangladesh squad for T20 World Cup: Mahmudullah Riyad overlooked
Besides, Yasir Ali was picked, which many believe is a direct replacement for Mahmudullah Riyad. Yasir has only played one T20I in his international career and that was against Afghanistan in March this year. The right-handed middle order is known to be a very effective hard-hitter in the middle-order. If given the chance, the selectors believe Yasir will excel.
This announced Bangladesh squad will play the New Zealand tri-nation series before taking part in the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia. The selectors also picked four standby players, and they are Soumya Sarkar, Shoriful Islam, Rishad Hossain, and Sheikh Mahedi Hasan.
The 15-member Bangladesh squad for the T20 World Cup 2022
Shakib Al Hasan (captain), Sabbir Rahman, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Afif Hossain, Mossadek Hossain, Litton Das, Yasir Ali, Nurul Hasan, Mustafizur Rahman, Mohammad Saifuddin, Taskin Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Hasan Mahmud, Najmul Hossain, Nasum Ahmed.
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Let’s analyze the Bangladesh T20 World Cup 2022 squad’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
Strengths: a versatile bowling attack
Bangladesh's roster has a variety of bowlers, but it remains to be seen if they will be able to display their full potential on Australian surfaces. The selectors included five fast bowlers, two left-arm orthodox spinners and two off-spinners in their kitty.
Therefore, Shakib has the luxury of picking suitable bowlers from the squad to form an effective bowling lineup. However, not having a leg-spinner could be an issue given the fact that leg-break bowlers have proven to be very effective in T20 format cricket.
Read Bangladesh’s new target is 2024 T20 World Cup, says Nazmul
Bangladesh's top three most successful T20I bowlers since the Twenty20 World Cup 2021
Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/
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Weaknesses: Unstable opening lineup and unreliable power hitters
Litton Das and Najmul Hossain Shanto are the main two candidates to open the innings for Bangladesh in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022. None of the batters have performed as expected on the international stage since 2021. But there are no ideal alternatives for Bangladesh in the opening at the moment. Therefore, the BCB has picked players who have better techniques as top order batters.
Another major concerning factor is the lack of power hitters in the death overs. Bangladesh's players are lacking in big hitting in the death overs to accelerate run rates. Sabbir, Afif, Mosaddek, Yasir, and Nurul will be responsible for doing the power hitting in the final five overs of the innings. They are all well-known for being aggressive, but none of them is consistent on the international platform.
Top three best strike rates (at least 5 innings) of Bangladesh's middle-order (5 to 8 positions) since the T20 World Cup 2021
Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/
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Opportunities: Captain Shakib Al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Yasir Ali and Najmul Hossain Shanto
Shakib Al Hasan will have a great chance to demonstrate that he is a captain who can make a difference with a decent team at the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022. It's a significant test for him, but Shakib enjoys taking on new challenges. Bangladesh will be trying to win at least two games during the main event. Shakib will face a barrage of criticism if his team loses these games.
The forthcoming mega event will be important for Sabbir Rahman, Yasir Ali, and Najmul Hossain Shanto, in addition to skipper Shakib. They are very talented players, and Bangladesh's cricket would greatly benefit if they could maintain consistency in their performances. Sabbir, Yasir, and Najmul will need to perform well at the next Twenty20 World Cup to secure their positions in the Bangladesh T20 lineup.
Threats: Poor form in the pace unit
Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, and Mohammad Saifuddin are expected to make the Bangladesh playing XI. However, their recent T20I outings showed that none of the players are in the best of their form at the moment.
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With low confidence, can they make an impact during the tournament? Bangladesh pacers should feel confident in getting an extra advantage from the Australian wickets, which will likely be pace-friendly. However, they need to be well prepared to face some of the world’s best power hitters.
Performances of Bangladesh's pacers in T20I since January 2021 (who have been picked for the World Cup 2022)
Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/
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Aftermath
There isn't a significant controversy regarding Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup 2022 squad, with the exception of Mahmudullah Riyad's omission. However, the main concern is whether this side is capable of competing against quality teams in unfamiliar Australian conditions. The Shakib-led team will need to put on a strong performance against teams like India, Pakistan, South Africa, and Afghanistan to vie for a semifinal spot.
As the Sri Lanka cricket team recently demonstrated in the Asia Cup 2022 competition, a team with good momentum can do incredible things in a big tournament. Bangladesh might perform well at the 2022 T20 World Cup if they can find a good team combination, even though the odds are not in their favour. Hope our T20 Cup 2022 Bangladesh team's SWOT analysis helps you find the strength, weakness, opportunity and threat of tigers.