Dhaka – Bangladesh top-order batsman Soumya Sarkar wants to play long innings if he gets a spot in the best eleven in the first Test against West Indies, which is scheduled to begin at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium here on November 22.“I’ll try to play a good game. No matter in what position I play, I’ll try to survive at the crease for a long time. It’ll be possible for me to play long innings when I’m able to tackle bowlers at the beginning,” he said after the first day’s play of a two-day warm-up match against West Indies at MA Aziz Stadium in Chattogram on Sunday.
Soumya, who played Test last in October 2017 and has got a call for the first Test against the visitors, thinks host bowlers will need to deliver more quality bowling in the main battle as the West Indies batsmen handled Bangladesh spinners quite well on the first day of the practice match. “If we can produce quality [spin] bowling in a good position continuously, they may fail to overcome,” Soumya said in reply to a query about the spin bowling strength.
“Our spinners bowled well and they [West Indies batsmen] also handled those in a good manner. They played their last series against India, so they’ve become acquainted with the spin bowling than before. I think they’re well-prepared though there will be more pressure in the main game,” he added.
The southpaw feels that the Bangladesh team get stronger with the return of skipper Shakib Al Hasan recovering from his finger injury. “Shakib bhai is a big part of our game. All team members are happy with his return. In the last series, our team played good and we hope we’ll play better with his return,” Soumya concluded.UNB
