Mehidy: Lack of big partnerships cost Bangladesh the game

Bangladesh ODI captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz rued the lack of big partnerships that could have sustained the visitors in their 286-run chase after they went down by 99 runs in the third ODI against Sri Lanka in Pallekele. With the loss, Bangladesh squandered the ODI series 2-1 after having lost the preceding Test series as well.

Mehidy said that while Sri Lanka banked on a 124-run fourth-wicket stand between Kusal Mendis and captain Charith Asalanka after they were in a spot of bother, Bangladesh failed to stitch a similar stand.

"When [Towhid] Hridoy and Jaker [Ali] were batting together, I still believed we could win the game," Mehidy said. "We just couldn't put together partnerships like Sri Lanka. They had a big partnership after they lost three wickets for 100 runs. Partnerships in the middle overs are crucial. We got a couple of 40s, but winning is hard without these partnerships in ODI cricket."

Hridoy, who top-scored for Bangladesh with 51, had stands of 42 with Parvez Hossain Emon and 43 with Mehidy. However, none of the batters could carry on after getting starts.

"We are getting out soon after getting set," Mehidy said. "We can't keep the momentum for too long. We have to work on it. When I was batting with Hridoy today, we nearly grabbed the momentum. Then I got out. Momentum is required for a partnership. Strike rotation is important in a partnership. We have to play more low-risk cricket, not the high-risk cricket we are playing."

Another area of concern, according to Mehidy, is Bangladesh's failure to bat out the 50 overs in any of the three games. They were bowled out in 35.5 overs in the first ODI in Colombo, 48.5 overs in the second, and 39.4 overs in the third.

The Bangladesh captain felt the middle order, including himself, needed to be more responsible. Mehidy, who now bats at No. 5, was guilty of throwing away his wicket in two of the three matches. On Tuesday, Mehidy, who struck four fours and a six in his 25-ball 28, holed out to long-on at a critical stage of the chase.

"It is a concern for the team that we couldn't bat 50 overs [in any of the matches]," he said. "It would have helped us if we had batted properly. Our middle-order batters need to take more responsibility. I couldn't play a lot of balls, too. It would have been better [if I had done so]. We have a lot of room for improvement. We have a lot of cricket in front of us.

"My dismissal put the team under pressure. I was trying to stay in touch with the run rate. I was looking for at least a boundary per over to meet the required run-rate. I didn't want to put that pressure on Towhid Hridoy. I tried to take a calculated risk, but I couldn't execute that shot properly. If I had, it would have gone for six."

Hridoy scored his second half-century of the series but failed to carry on. Mehidy said the other batters didn't offer Hridoy enough support to enable him to accelerate when he was set at the crease. "I think he could have batted at a faster rate, but he couldn't do it as we kept losing wickets," Mehidy said. "Whenever he needed momentum, there was a setback. I won't blame him for today's defeat. If we could support him in a partnership, he could have batted at a faster rate. It is hard for a batter to bat in this type of situation."

Mehidy, however, said he would still back his batters playing their natural game, despite the setbacks in this series. "We could have hit more fours and picked up more singles," he said. "It is also a matter of emotional control. Everyone likes to play cricket in certain ways. Our top order likes to play with a bit of risk. They like to find boundaries. I can't stop them. It will make the situation difficult in the team. We are trying to back every player's strength."