New Delhi: David Hemp, the batting coach of the Bangladesh cricket team admitted that his team’s batters played quite better in their second innings than the first but also made them aware of the threats posed by a quality Indian bowling attack in the first Test, being played in Chennai. India are already in a commanding position to bag the first Test as Rishabh Pant (109) and Shubman Gill (119*) added to the visitor’s misery.
The hosts have set a mammoth target of 515 runs for Bangladesh to win the first Test. However, Bangladesh displayed promising batting in their second essay as they reached 158/4 when the play had to be called off early due to poor light. They still require 357 runs to pull the game in their favour. At the post-day press conference, Hemp dissected his batters and looked forward to the upcoming challenges.
“The difference with the second (innings) is we got people that got in, so they faced balls. It’s all about scoring runs, and you’re looking to score, so that hasn’t changed,” he said and also heaped praise on the Indian bowling attack saying that it is going to be a challenge for them on Day 4 to score against them.
“We got tested or players got tested early on in their innings around the stumps more, and that was a big difference. Obviously, we’re playing against India, who possess some quality bowling, a very confident side, especially playing at home. So, you’re going to be challenged,” he added.
The red-soil Chennai track possessed fine batting conditions as there was less heat and it looked pretty good. Skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto remains unbeaten on 51 and has got star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan in his company. Hemp also reflected on his batter’s poor outing in the first innings and spotted the difference between the two essays.
“I think the difference between the first and the second innings was obviously ball space. So, I think the Indian bowlers certainly challenged the stumps really well in the first innings, and they knocked people over,” Hemp said.
Optimistic Hemp
The 53-year-old went on to add that the Chepauk track is a “reasonable” one to bat and showed optimism upon his batters to put on a show on Sunday. Other than Shanto and Shakib, Bangladesh still have Litton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz left.
“In terms of days to bat, it’s still a good wicket. Today, we’ve seen that (Ravichandran) Ashwin obviously got a couple of balls to bounce quite significantly. But, if you still miss, you can still score. So for us tomorrow, it’s still a reasonable surface,” Hemp signed off.
Meanwhile, there were speculations that Shakib is dealing with a finger injury, a reason he is not being able to pick wickets, but Hemp brushed aside that by saying, “No, not aware of that at all, sorry.”
(With PTI inputs)
Bangladesh batting coach David Hemp dissected his side’s batters, comparing their performance between the first and second innings against India in the Chennai Test. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
