Long-term view imperative as international cricket set to return

With international cricket already having resumed in various parts of the world amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is also now gearing up to get back on the International stage by hosting West Indies in January 2021.

The BCB confirmed yesterday that the West Indies side will arrive on January 10 for three ODIs and two Tests.

After such a long gap -- Bangladesh last played international cricket in March this year -- the time has come for the national selectors to plan with a long-term view when forming the national team across three formats.

Bangladesh cricket is nearing a transition period with the likes of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad all into their mid- to late-thirties. Now is the time to prepare for the vacuum that will be created when these stalwarts, inevitably, leave the scene.

Apart from Mashrafe, the four others are still expected to go on playing till the 2023 World Cup as well as in the longest format, fitness and performance permitting.

There was talk of selectors blooding some youngsters in the shortest format and, to a lesser extent in the ODIs, to prepare a fresh batch before the next World Cup.

Mashrafe retired from T20Is in 2017 and quit the ODI captaincy in March this year, with the board handing over the baton to Tamim.

However, the 37-year-old pacer has not announced his retirement from ODIs yet, even though there were murmurs that Mashrafe may retire from ODI cricket as early as at the end of the 2019 World Cup.

But that did not happen and technically, Mashrafe is still available for national selection in the fifty-over format. The pacer made a strong statement coming back from a long gap of eight months after battling with injuries as he was roped in by Gemcon Khulna in the middle of the ongoing Bangabandhu T20 Cup.

The veteran pacer bowled a great line and length and his clever variations of pace managed to undo the batsmen. But it was his five-wicket haul against Gazi Group Chattogram, that too in the crucial first qualifier on Monday, which once again bring him back in the limelight.

With three ODIs in the West Indies series, the question now is whether the selectors will consider Mashrafe for based on his performances in the Bangabandhu T20 Cup? Or will they move on from Mashrafe to look forward and give opportunities to youngsters like Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, Shohidul Islam, Mukidul Islam or Sumon Khan, all of whom have shown a lot of talent in the pace bowling department recently?

Although T20s are not part of West Indies' schedule in Bangladesh, there may be hard decisions for the selectors to make on that front as well. Tamim's approach in T20s has raised questions of late as the left-hander's strike rate in the shortest format of the game has not set the world alight.

Despite being the most successful batsman for Bangladesh across all formats, perhaps Tamim needs to assess his game when it comes to the shortest format and it would not be surprising if he makes way to allow youngsters to settle in.

T20 cricket requires energy and excitement and the likes of Naim Sheikh, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Soumya Sarkar and Liton Das have got the potential, which has been reflected in the Bangabandhu T20 Cup.