NZ Series 2010: Post-Mortem and Grades

[al Furqaan]

Imrul (B-)...failed to make any biggies
SN (B+)...exceeded expectations, needs to build on it
Junaid (D)...batting sucked, fielding sucked too, lucky to avoid an F
Rock (F--)...patheticly cowardly batting, does get a B for fielding, but totally replaceable
Shakib (A)...its already been said
Mushfiq (C)...i think he's wasted batting here, keeping was better than usual
Riyad (C+)...batted too slowly, his bowling negates his D-grade batting
Naeem (C-)...same as riyad, bowling negated his F-grade batting
Razzak (B+)...nothing spectacular, but did well enough to be pleased with him
Shafiul (B)...got the big breakthroughs, needs to be a little more economical
Rubel (A)...a single line isn't enough to hymn his praises
Nazmul (B)...the one opportunity he got, he did well enough but he's still 4th string
Shubho (B)...one great performance and 2 mediocre ones...hope he can build

overall (A)...4-0 against a team ranked 2nd just weeks earlier, deserves nothing less than the best.

batting (C-)...mostly due to the F of the lower order and batting PP

bowling (A)...self explanatory

fielding (A-)...and few drops and run outs missed, but over-all a very top class job

captaincy (A-)...shakib did it nearly perfectly...should have attacked a bit sooner in the last game, but pulled of the W anyways.

***************

the most noticeable thing from this series, as well as our England win at Bristol, is that the boys have the fight to win games from close positions. they don't choke anymore. they are defending totals, world class bowlers are unable to. they are playing as a unit, and feeding off one another. excellent signs ahead of the world cup.

the only problem is our batting is unable to press on the starts we are getting. there is no lower order fightback. the fact that we've figured everything else out, means that i think we will figure this out too eventually. however, it may not be in time enough to do some serious damage at the world cup. i just hope and pray that we fix it.

at the moment riyad and naeem should be persisted with, because so far the team strategy has prevented them from being the destructive forced they can be late in an innings. they did against zimbabwe and against SL and India earlier this year. if they have completely lost it, i suggest re-calling Ashraful or Alok or even both into the world cup squad. we need firepower. giving those guys free reign to hit out batting #7 does not rely on them to build an innings nor do we lose anything. worse case scenario they'll hit a boundary and be out the next ball. right now riyad and naeem are consuming 30 balls to score 15 runs in the batting PP and slog overs. that is unacceptable. this is of course provided Ash/Alok do reasonably well in the NCL List A matches.

really impressed with Rubel and to a slightly lesser degree Shafiul. they've cemented their spots. Shafiul's slower delivery was very heartening, and Rubel's accuracy was seriously McGrath-like. he hit the same spot over and over again. even Mortaza doesn't have that kind of sustained focus. so what do we do when Mash comes back?

well Mash can either reclaim his mantle as the pace spearhead, or we can use him only when we need a 3rd seamer...and play him strictly as an all-rounder in place of Riyad/Naeem/Shubho...none of who seem to wield the long-handle the way Mash can. the lessened bowing load on his shoulders, may reduce his tendency to get injured + we benefit from his batting. i think Mortaza needs to seriously work on his batting, because his 2007 form showed he can be a very compact and handy bat if he puts his mind to it.

fielding was superb, but not perfect. all credit goes to teh coaching staff and the players themselves.

i honestly think, this team is expected to go far into the World Cup.

[tonoy]

Nice Thread Asaad. I like to quantify the rating score. Hence, I will rate them out of a 10 point scale.

Imrul Kayes(7/10) He had a pretty good series. I don't have much issue with his run rate as he seems more of a solid partner that supports the more aggressive counterpart. Like it or not, he is going to be the partner for Tamim and will be a vital player for the world cup.

Shahriar Nafees (6/10) Although he mentions of trying to play his natural game, I get the feeling that he was trying to fill in Tamim's spot. Did play well in his first two match, but couldn't keep up with the consistency. I believe he definitely deserves to be in the reserve squad and receive more training from the main coaching staff. An in-form SN will always be good for Bangladesh. There could be a spot for him in the top four slot, if one of them fails to deliver(as is Rockib doing now).

Junaid Siddique(4/10) Not a good series for him. He was a dependable fielder and although, there were some blemishes on the last match, if ever there was a ball that was skied or a ball edged, Junaid would most likely be the guy you would want for taking that catch. His batting was a different story. He was just awful with the bat and needs to go back to the basics of playing along the ground. He should feel disappointed with himself with such lousy performance.

Roqibul Hasan(2/10) Roqibul might just have one of his worst series at home. At no point did he look comfortable out there. I'm sure the coaching staff also realized it. However, I believe Roqibul is capable of much more than this. We should all realize that a dip in form occurs to even the best of players, and good players always rebound from such incidence. I'd like to think Roqibul will get out of this slump, he seems to be the type of player to do so. With that said though, I want him dropped from the squad and let him play in the domestic games to let him regain his form. National squad is no place to regain form!

Shakib Al Hasan(10/10) Do I really have to say anything about him? He's absolutely had a fantastic series and has done almost everything perfectly. Indeed Iceman>>>Bradman.

Mushfiqur Rahman(5/10) Mushfiq had an average series. It seemed as though he improved his glovework initially on the first two matches, but that had changed on the last two games. He could do much better with the bat too. But, it seems unlikely that anyone would take over his place before the worldcup.

Mahmadullah Riyad(5/10) Riyad still looks like he is in a slump of batting form. Although, he had created a nice partnership with Shakib at the 4th ODI, it wasn't enough. He needs to realize that he is one of the key to the middle order and needs to bat according to the role. At no point is a runrate of 3-5 is acceptable during the batting powerplay. He must bat for the team plan and not play selfishly to keep a mere 30+ average. It was because of his bowling that I had raised his score to a five. His offspinners are handy for the team. The management has to sort out this issue with Riyad and Nayeem. They pretty much have the same role at batting. In the future, only one will be picked and the player able to execute the role of batting for the team should be selected.

Naeem Islam(5/10) Same as Riyad. Learn to finish the innings off or else won't have much spot in the team.

Abdul Razzak(7/10) Bowled well in the series. He looked like he is starting to get his rhythm right. It is quite vital we get Razzaq to rediscover his old form ASAP as he is one of the key bowlers for the worldcup. A dozen of Zimb wickets should help boost that confidence for the worldcup.

Shafiul Islam(6/10) I liked what I saw so far in the series. He still has tendencies to give out an occasional bad ball to ruin a good over. But he is improving albeit slowly. I hope the new bowling coach can greatly improve his performance and I have a strong hunch that he will. The only problem, that I am worried about is what will happen once Mash returns? And I have no answer for that following question.

Rubel Hossein(8/10) Had a wonderful series. I really didn't have any expectations for him. But boy did he surprise me. He is starting to get his line and length right. What's really exciting is the fact that he seems to get some reverse swing with the older ball, which none of our pacers can do except for the occasional Shahadat burst in test. The future looks bright again for this lad as he might just fill the shoe of the ever dependable pacer that our team is desperate to find.

Nazmul Hossein(6/10) Not a bad game. It was unfortunate that he was injured. It is always good to have back up pace bowlers as our pace bowlers are not the most durable ones.

Shuvo (7/10) Shuvo did not have the best of starts for his international career. This series had change that though. With an incredible performance in the Third ODI, he had the perfect kick to get his international career rolling. Although his last two games weren't as good as the first game, he was still economical and was part of the deadly spin trio. Another thing going for him, was his great ground and aerial fielding ability. Combine that with an explosive lower order batting(which he has failed to do this series) and we just have a long term lower order allrounder that we also need.

[Rifat]

great thread

all the best points has been already made by both Al-furqaan and tonoy.

however, I still want to add something, and here is what i will add:

*Depending on the situation, when Mashrafee comes back, we can play with three pacers.
one of the spinners: Shuvo/MahmudUllah would get dropped depedning on how much they have to offer with the bat in seam-friendly conditions.

*In Spin friendly conditions we can play with 2 seamers, depending which two of the three lot is really on form and on song {Mashrafee, Rubel, Shafiul} and keep the spinner/batting allrounders.


*what this series win ensures for Bangladeshi players from now one is that one bad performance will kick you out of the team. even though Rakibul played a good knock in England, this series he didn't get much runs. therefore, unless he gets his strike rate up and some great knocks in the domestic league he is pretty much out of the team.

*Don't forget Tamim should be back soon.

another point to note that, now that Bangladesh have gotten their act together, maybe it is time we plan a seperate team for ODI squad and a seperate team for test squad. seperate in the sense that a few players will heavily focus on Test Cricket and a few players will concentrate more being a ODI specialist.

our repeated batting powerplay failures signify one thing: that is: we are not really mentally ready for T20 cricket.

[Ajfar]

Good grade so far. But I would give shakib 12 out of 10.

Posted via BC Mobile Edition (iPhone)

[godzilla]

Originally Posted by tonoy
Roqibul Hasan(2/10) Roqibul might just have one of his worst series at home. At no point did he look comfortable out there. I'm sure the coaching staff also realized it. However, I believe Roqibul is capable of much more than this. We should all realize that a dip in form occurs to even the best of players, and good players always rebound from such incidence. I'd like to think Roqibul will get out of this slump, he seems to be the type of player to do so. With that said though, I want him dropped from the squad and let him play in the domestic games to let him regain his form. National squad is no place to regain form!

lol which will lead to a RETIREMENT once again

[Dilscoop]

Imrul: C- (Still too slow. Failed to convert the starts. And all of a sudden after hitting a 6, he went nuts, which shows his ugly temperament!)
Nafees: B (1 start, 1 unfinished inn. deserved a minnow bashing 100, 1 duck, 1 blah, decent return)
Siddique: D- (in danger for failing, after those drop catches, nothing special to talk about in this series)
Roqibul: D (his fielding saving him from an F)
Shakib: __ (Giving him an A+ would be injustice, simply flawless)
Rahim: C (not so great with the bat, still have to work on keeping)
Riyad: C (C for batting, B for bowling. He has Vettori's number, only if his teammates would help!)
Naeem: B (Boosted from C to B for that run out. That gave us a series win. Bowled well.)
Shuvo: B+ (I thought he could bat? For his batting he missed out on A)
Shafiul: A
Rubel: A
Razzak: B (He gotta away with few things, because those birds can't play spin)


Can you believe it! Our seamers get As! Shahadat and Mashrafee never done that.

[shakibrulz]

I prefer numbers rather than grading
Rubel - 8.5/10 RBX rockeed!
Shafiul 7/10 Took some fab catches and gave initial breakthroughs
Siddique 3/10 (and I'm being generous)
Rokibul - 2.5/10 (same as above)
Imrul - 6/10 - Got decent starts, failed to convert them
Shahriar NAfees - 6.5/10 - exceeded expectations, was a bit unlucky
Shuvo - 6.5/10 - Was great in one game, so so in the rest.
Rahim - 5/10 - Keeping was decent, batting was nothing great either
Naeem - 5.5/10 - Pathetic batting, good bowling, 1.5 for that amazing direct hit
Riyad - 4/10 - That too only for his bowling. Total sucker with the bat
Razzak - 5.5/10 - Crucial wickets at crucial times.

Shakib - Well

[Zeeshan]

Shamim A+
Jafarullah A++
Lotus for acting A++
Athar B-
Nadir Shah and third umpire A-
Danny Morrison D
Fans B
Rifat C++ :p

[Ajfar]

Originally Posted by ZeeshanM
Rifat C++ :p

that's actually kind of funny in a very nerdy kind of way.

[al-Sagar]

there are lots of good points.

1. with nafess looking good, now we have another player who can fight for a place in the top 3-4. junaid, raqibul and imrul have to be on their toes to keep a place in.

2. with shuvo finally settling in now rajjak has a competitor for his place. in spin friendly condition 3 SLA is good option but in pace friendly conditions we have to select one from raj and shuvo, so another battle here.

3. rubel now shows he merits a place in the bowling. so when mash is back and if we go with two pacers we have a problem to drop one from the three. so again all three has to perform to keep their place.

concerns:

1. junaid, mushfiq, mahmudullah naeem struggling for runs.
2. raqibul struggling more.
3. should injury prone mash continue as captain ???

[al-Sagar]

Originally Posted by ZeeshanM
Shamim A+
Jafarullah A++
Lotus for acting A++
Athar B-
Nadir Shah and third umpire A-
Danny Morrison D
Fans B
Rifat C++ :p

u can add ratings for the match thread openers

[Dilscoop]

Originally Posted by ZeeshanM
Lotus for acting A++

Man, I had to cover up my face after I saw him go Miely Cyrus with his little *peace sign*

And what was up with having 20 people on that little stage.

[_Rafi_]

Ashraful- 10/10 (for not playing in the series)
IK: 6.5
SN: 6
ROK: 3.5(his fielding deserves some praise atleast)
Z: 4.5
Shakib: 10
Mushy: 5
Riyad: 6
Shafi: 7
Rubel:8
Raj: 7.5
Shuvo: 7
Nazmul: 7.5+sympathy
Mashrafe: Sympathy

[BANFAN]

Originally Posted by Dilscoop
Man, I had to cover up my face after I saw him go Miely Cyrus with his little *peace sign*

And what was up with having 20 people on that little stage.

This is so odd looking. But that's the way things work in our country. Every one wants to come on TV

[BANFAN]

Shakib: 10
Rubel:8
Nazmul: 8
Shafi: 7.5
Raj: 7.5
Shuvo: 7
IK: 6.5
SN: 6
Mushy: 4.5
Riyad: 4.5
ROK: 3.5
Zunaid: 3.5

[thebest]

Originally Posted by al Furqaan
Imrul (B-)...failed to make any biggies
SN (B+)...exceeded expectations, needs to build on it
Junaid (D)...batting sucked, fielding sucked too, lucky to avoid an F
Rock (F--)...patheticly cowardly batting, does get a B for fielding, but totally replaceable
Shakib (A)...its already been said
Mushfiq (C)...i think he's wasted batting here, keeping was better than usual
Riyad (C+)...batted too slowly, his bowling negates his D-grade batting
Naeem (C-)...same as riyad, bowling negated his F-grade batting
Razzak (B+)...nothing spectacular, but did well enough to be pleased with him
Shafiul (B)...got the big breakthroughs, needs to be a little more economical
Rubel (A)...a single line isn't enough to hymn his praises
Nazmul (B)...the one opportunity he got, he did well enough but he's still 4th string
Shubho (B)...one great performance and 2 mediocre ones...hope he can build

I feel hidden bias for SN, Riyad and againest Shafiul, Nazmul, Nayeem.
SN has one good performance, one ok performance and two bad got a B+.
Riyad has two Ok performance; two bad performance. He also got B+.
Shuvo has one great performance and two ok performance. Got B.
On other hand Shafiul has three ok performance ; got B.
Nazmul has one good performance. Got B
And I think to generous to cry baby. He should have a Z-

[simon]

Originally Posted by BANFAN
This is so odd looking. But that's the way things work in our country. Every one wants to come on TV

i've seen worse in Sharjah during Pak series.

[Haru-party]

shakib 100/10

[Roni_uk]

You guys are harsh on Rubel. 10/10 and A++ from me. The last wicket of the series was just beyond world class.