Sports Desk:

Bangladesh spin bowling coach Rangana Herath stressed on the variations to help the spinners get better, as he believed that the bowlers wouldn’t get their desired wickets in the forthcoming ICC World Cup scheduled to be held in India in October-November.

Generally, Bangladeshi spinners get wickets particularly to their liking in home series, but in the World Cup, the organisers try to give a wicket that will be more favourable for the batsmen than the bowlers.

‘I always think that when the condition is tough for the spinners, there will be challenge. That’s why we are going to be prepared before we go to the World Cup. This is part of the preparation. We worked on variations and tactics. If you don’t get assistance from the pitch, this is the thing we need to apply for,’ Herath told reporters after a training session in Mirpur on Tuesday.

‘There are many variations, like creating some angles, bowling over the wicket, round the wicket, pace variations. If you name it something like cross seam, carrom ball. We are working on them. We need to do these things very often.’

Herath wants the spinners to use those variations in domestic cricket and enhance the skill as he would like to see it.

‘These guys are keen to learn. I am so happy. Once they go back to their club or team, they will continue these works,’ he said.

The former legendary Sri Lankan spinner, however, was elated to see the spin resources of Bangladesh. Considering the shortage of leg-spinner in the pipeline, he wants to help them hone their skills in a bid to survive at the international level.

Bangladesh have had some leg-spinners of late, but none of them could cement their place. The Tigers are now trying Rishad Hossain, whom Herath thinks could be a good weapon.

‘Rishad played the last game against Ireland. There’s another wrist spinner, and Biplob is there. Those are the resources we have at the moment. We are trying to get the best out of them. They will gain more confidence with opportunities,’ he said.

At the same time, Herath wants batsmen like Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid to be ready to bowl some overs regularly in a bid to create more bowling options.

‘If the batters can bowl a few overs, like Shanto, it gives you more options for the bowling side. When you have more options, you have the right combination. I always like to see Hridoy, Shanto get involved with bowling,’ he added.

While Bangladesh are always a spin-heavy side, the rise of the country’s fast bowling unit was a treat to watch.

‘When you have a proper bowling unit, when you have fast bowlers and spinners, that’s a proper, proper bowling unit. That’s what we need to work on. We are trying to get the best bowling unit,’ Herath added.

Herath also thought that pacers’ rise didn’t mean that spinners’ jobs would be easier.

‘This is not about working easier or anything. This is all about teamwork. If someone is doing well, we need to appreciate that. If someone is not doing well, we need to find out where we need to improve. We are trying to improve as a team,’ he added.