Expectations, Excitement & Attitude

[Ian Pont]

First things first. Two wins over India and Sri Lanka, are not a surprise. After so long of underperforming I understand why fans don't want to believe. They have been let down before and so often that everyone seems surprised and shocked when an 'upset' of a win is caused.

But let me say this.

Every coach that has ever been to work in BD has stated publicly the amount of talent is high. It is very high but application of that talent has been the issue.

Dav, Jamie and Stuart as Head Coaches have basically said the same things to each set of players during their collective 8 years or so in charge "be positive, play with no fear and show your talent". All coaches involved scratch their heads because the raw talent is there.

These wins simply prove that when the team plays collectively professional cricket, they can win. Great sides do that all the time. It becomes a habit. Staying calm and trusting yourself is what England, Australia and South Africa does. They lose games along the way but always back themselves to win. Their mindset is a winning one.

India has had an appalling winter away from home. Sri Lanka has also suffered badly in Australia. That's why these wins are not a shock if you dig below the surface. It is a great time to play them both. Pakistan too, were almost beaten in the first match and they lost to England in Dubai and have had issues off the field in recent times. It simply means if BD can hold their nerve, they can win the Asia Cup. Odds are BD will win it.

This isn't about giving credit to any player or any coach. This is about the beginning of a national consciousness to EXPECT victories now and not treat a single win as if the World Cup has been won. I understand the emotional relief of actually winning matches, but the SL win was a complete cake walk. It was an easy win. It simply required people to do their job without being overly tested. And it was truly great to see them do that.

I would hope now that there is a change of attitude to accept wins are part of a developing side. The BPL has had a great effect on the local players belief - of that there is no doubt. Let's use that to drive further forward.

But it starts in the mind. And it comes from people expecting the best, not being surprised if a game is won.

It's exciting to beat any team in a match. Let's all celebrate when that happens. I am expecting it more now though because by simply playing cricket - the job they are employed to do - results will start to come.

My view is expect the best, prepare for it, and that is what you will get - most of the time.

[TigerEz]

dang u type pretty fast.....

[Purbasha T]

Thanks for that Ian.

And the mighty Bengal (well the Eastern part anyway...) will rise again.

They're half-way there.

[razath]

Well said coach. Thank you very much.

[playmaker]

Inshallah we will rank in the top 5 teams in the world soon enough

[mehedi]

hope this is just the beginning of a new era for Bangladesh cricket and yes Ian you are spot on about the fact that players need to believe in themselves to win matches as they did in last two games.

BTW Ian a simple question to you as a fan. Do you think we should change the winning combination for the final match as some of the players arent performing well( Nazim and shahadat) and if you think we should then what would be your changes?

[mufi_02]

The shock comes because not even in our wildest dreams we thought we would make it to the final. We almost had Pak, hold on the nerve to beat India, and had SL quite convincingly. I can say, Ian, that you were shocked too. In another thread "100 things I learned from Asia Cup", in number 52, you said BD could well finish as the 4th best team. You must have been joking but it also shows that you weren't expecting BD to perform as such.

I won't say India and SL had excuses as you mentioned. They are WC Finalist and are demons at subcontinental conditions. How demonic? Just look at India's thrashing of Pak and 320+ chase. They have made a cakewalk out of it.

We should get used to it. Thanks for your thoughts .

[Ian Pont]

Originally Posted by mehedi
hope this is just the beginning of a new era for Bangladesh cricket and yes Ian you are spot on about the fact that players need to believe in themselves to win matches as they did in last two games.

BTW Ian a simple question to you as a fan. Do you think we should change the winning combination for the final match as some of the players arent performing well( Nazim and shahadat) and if you think we should then what would be your changes?

I would have played Anamul and Sunny both from the very start. They were both in TERRIFIC form from the BPL (unlike Shahdat and Nazimuddin) and this would have meant Nazmul, Shaf (now injured) and Mash as the seam bowling attack. Mash of course, regained his confidence and form with Dhaka Glads in the BPL, so if you are going to choose a side based on form then the team almost selected itself.

What concerns me is we learned a huge amount from the BPL about the local players who could and couldn't perform under pressure. Yet we didn't really use that knowledge (albeit from T20) to work out who can do what and where. I said before that Anamul is more than ready and in him, you have another Nasir Hossain type batter. Plus he is a great fielder if not keeping wicket.

Sunny is simply the best spinner in BD right now along with Shakib.

You either select the best 11 players for a team or you choose a team that you feel can do a variety of jobs. Shahadat unfortunately is not keeping the runs down NOR taking wickets (which would be the only reason for playing him) and Nazimuddin hasn't scored big runs OR scored them super fast (which would be the reason for his selection).

I don't buy into the concept of not changing a winning side. I buy into the concept of selecting the BEST side to win. If you think back to Dhaka Gladiators, we brought in three changes for the semi finals despite the current players getting us to the semi finals.

It's not about being brave. It's about recognising you want the best team on the park. And that means being flexible and identifying weak links in your side.

Just as the players in any team need to be more professional minded and apply their correct mindset, so do those selecting and sending the team out onto the field in the first place.

[Ian Pont]

Originally Posted by mufi_02
The shock comes because not even in our wildest dreams we thought we would make it to the final. We almost had Pak, hold on the nerve to beat India, and had SL quite convincingly. I can say, Ian, that you were shocked too. In another thread "100 things I learned from Asia Cup", in number 52, you said BD could well finish as the 4th best team. You must have been joking but it also shows that you weren't expecting BD to perform as such.

I won't say India and SL had excuses as you mentioned. They are WC Finalist and are demons at subcontinental conditions. How demonic? Just look at India's thrashing of Pak and 320+ chase. They have made a cakewalk out of it.

We should get used to it. Thanks for your thoughts .

I didn't say that. I said "Bangladesh can finish in the Top 4" which of course they will in a 4 team competition!

[mehedi]

Originally Posted by Ian Pont
I would have played Anamul and Sunny both from the very start. They were both in TERRIFIC form from the BPL (unlike Shahdat and Nazimuddin) and this would have meant Nazmul, Shaf (now injured) and Mash as the seam bowling attack. Mash of course, regained his confidence and form with Dhaka Glads in the BPL, so if you are going to choose a side based on form then the team almost selected itself.

What concerns me is we learned a huge amount from the BPL about the local players who could and couldn't perform under pressure. Yet we didn't really use that knowledge (albeit from T20) to work out who can do what and where. I said before that Anamul is more than ready and in him, you have another Nasir Hossain type batter. Plus he is a great fielder if not keeping wicket.

Sunny is simply the best spinner in BD right now along with Shakib.

You either select the best 11 players for a team or you choose a team that you feel can do a variety of jobs. Shahadat unfortunately is not keeping the runs down NOR taking wickets (which would be the only reason for playing him) and Nazimuddin hasn't scored big runs OR scored them super fast (which would be the reason for his selection).

I don't buy into the concept of not changing a winning side. I buy into the concept of selecting the BEST side to win. If you think back to Dhaka Gladiators, we brought in three changes for the semi finals despite the current players getting us to the semi finals.

It's not about being brave. It's about recognising you want the best team on the park. And that means being flexible and identifying weak links in your side.

Just as the players in any team need to be more professional minded and apply their correct mindset, so do those selecting and sending the team out onto the field in the first place.

Thank you for your reply. I would also like to see couple of changes in the line up for the final game and dont care about this winning combination thing. I think we should bring in Anamul and Abul for Nazim,Shahadat hoping they wont do anything worse than Nazim and Shahadat but the question would be whether they will be able to handle the pressure as this will be a big game for not only the newcomers but the experienced ones too

[Ian Pont]

Originally Posted by mehedi
Thank you for your reply. I would also like to see couple of changes in the line up for the final game and dont care about this winning combination thing. I think we should bring in Anamul and Abul for Nazim,Shahadat hoping they wont do anything worse than Nazim and Shahadat but the question would be whether they will be able to handle the pressure as this will be a big game for not only the newcomers but the experienced ones too

The secret is to treat every game the same. It's just another game of cricket. Anamul hit the winning runs in the BPL final and made 49 not out. He showed no signs of any nerves then.

Great player in the making. I say let him play and get the chance to experience beating Pakistan.

[taklima_naj]

It is a great pleasure to have a appreciation from you for us.
Thanks

[AsifTheManRahman]

Coach, you're talking to a bunch of people who wanted to win the World Cup earlier this year. Where is this shock talk coming from?

We want nothing but the cup in every tournament that we play.

[Dilscoop]

Where can I get my EEA degree?

[playmaker]

Its time that people stop comparing us to Afghanistan and Ireland

[shuziburo]

Originally Posted by AsifTheManRahman
Coach, you're talking to a bunch of people who wanted to win the World Cup earlier this year. Where is this shock talk coming from?

We want nothing but the cup in every tournament that we play.

Hopefully, this is not a flash in the pan and the table has been turned. Here is to winning the Asia Cup and the next WC...

Thank you for the kind words, Ian. We appreciate having you as a fan.

[Rubu]

thanks coach. I also think we should break the winning combination.

[zinatf]

Originally Posted by Ian Pont
First things first. Two wins over India and Sri Lanka, are not a surprise. After so long of underperforming I understand why fans This isn't about giving credit to any player or any coach. This is about the beginning of a national consciousness to EXPECT victories now and not treat a single win as if the World Cup has been won. I understand the emotional relief of actually winning matches, but the SL win was a complete cake walk. It was an easy win. It simply required people to do their job without being overly tested. And it was truly great to see them do that.

I would hope now that there is a change of attitude to accept wins are part of a developing side. The BPL has had a great effect on the local players belief - of that there is no doubt. Let's use that to drive further forward.

But it starts in the mind. And it comes from people expecting the best, not being surprised if a game is won.

very well said Ian.

[Nasif]

Now available as BC article

Expectations, Excitement and Attitude
Ian Pont

Tigers have done the unthinkable. However, as Ian writes, this is about the beginning of a national consciousness to expect victories and not treat a single win as if the World Cup has been won. As Bangladesh looks forward to Asia Cup final versus Pakistan, the former coach's words, may just be the right tonic needed for sanity in the Tiger's camp.

Read article »

[BANFAN]

Good points..........

"Let's not go overboard winning one match, as if we have won the world cup...." neither we should start thinking that we have become Ausies overnight....even if we win the Asia Cup. We have beaten Ind&SL fine, but in head to head competitions, they will still win most of the times...we need to grow further in individual skills and as a team to be a formidable side and getting at par with these team... But we have a great chance of getting there.... To make this development sustainable, we need to keep building a competitive domestic league. Or else we won't take time to fall back on a slippery log...

First of all, let's win the cup today.....

[Raynman]

What has been refreshing and exciting to watch in this Asia Cup is the hunger, desire and confidence to win and not merely be content with personal milestones or avoiding embarassing defeats.

The loss to Pakistan showed frustration on the players of letting one slip away as opposed to lashing back at fans and critics and telling them to acknowledge the respectable nature of the defeat. The attitude in the IND and SL chase wasn't 'can we?' but 'how should we?'.

TBH, since the 2007 WC, the series against NZ was the only time this attitude was evident.

I think BPL and the embrace of T20 of course plays a role in this new attitude. A big factor about BPL was the players got to see their foreign team mates show them first hand how to handle difficult run chases. It was about win/loss and you had to play to win, not to pad stats. This is something that was not there before.

I'm enjoying the success and hopefully, [finally] the turning of the corner that all of us have been anticipating.

Its important to note that a large portion of us complaining and being hard on the team for the past few years, were not doing it as pessimists but because we had the honest belief that the talent was there, just the winning belief/attitude that was lacking.

[Ian Pont]

Originally Posted by Ian Pont
I would have played Anamul and Sunny both from the very start. They were both in TERRIFIC form from the BPL (unlike Shahdat and Nazimuddin)

I can't believe I am quoting myself!

The above was SO obvious I can't really understand how the selectors got it so badly wrong. And then not correct things as it was getting increasingly evident that both were the weak links in the team.

if not the selectors, then the management? Someone, somewhere has shown how little cricket knowledge they have.

Wrong team selection I'm afraid from the start but then compounded by not changing it. That's a real shame.

[Boomerang]

Wish Anamul and Sunny being selected in place of nazimuddina and shahadat.

[Shubho]

Any thoughts on why the team management would have persisted with both Nazimuddin and Shahadat throughout the tournament?

[Boomerang]

Originally Posted by Shubho
Any thoughts on why the team management would have persisted with both Nazimuddin and Shahadat throughout the tournament?

To retain the winning combination. Didn't want to hurt ones self belief i guess.