Shanto’s batting the biggest positive in a T20I full of gains for the Tigers

Bangladesh won the 2nd T20I comprehensively by seven wickets and perhaps the biggest positive was captain Najmul Hossain Shanto's batting where he top-scored with 53 not out from 38 balls, but there were plenty of other performances and positives in what was a total team performance on Wednesday. 

"It feels good to win this game. We have played good cricket in both games but we couldn't win the first game unluckily," Shanto said at the post-match press conference. 

Shanto was a relieved man as well as he endured a difficult time in the recently concluded Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) where he failed to score a single innings over fifty and was also not given the captaincy of the Sylhet Sixers franchise. 

"I didn't have a good BPL but I want to get over my lackings in my batting. I think I did slightly better today. I will try to improve more," he said. 

Although he scored his first 50+ knock in 11 innings, to Shanto, helping his team in a winning contribution is what matters more. 

"A fifty is not important, rather an effective score for the team is what I am after. I am happy that I could contribute, and finish the chase," he explained.

The chase though was started off by Litton Das and Soumya Sarkar who formed a 68-run partnership and both batters got some runs but failed to carry on.

Soumya was out scoring 26 from 22 balls while Litton got out scoring 36 from 24 balls.

Towhid Hridoy, who scored just eight runs in the last match, and was among the runs in the BPL, joined his captain in an 87-run partnership to guide the team home. 

Hridoy was not out on 32 runs and given how the later batters Mahmudullah Riyad and Jaker Ali scored fifties in the last match, it starts to give the batting order more shape.

One of the biggest weaknesses for Bangladesh over the last few years has been their death overs bowling.

While the death overs bowling cost them dearly in the last match, it was a much more improved showing from the bowlers, especially in the middle overs, where the visitors lost four wickets.

"I think that after the first match, we planned well about our bowling. We were playing on a very good wicket. The bowlers executed the plans really well. They were clear about what they had to do," Shanto said. 

Overall, Shoriful Islam was the pick of the bowlers for Bangladesh where he gave away just 20 runs.

"Everyone importantly played for the team. We came back well after losing early wickets in the first T20I. It gave us the confidence that we can fight back from any situation," Shanto expressed.

Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman and Mahedi Hasan were a mixed bag though while leg-spinner Rishad Hossain was pretty impressive.

In a country where leg-spinners don't get many chances to play, Shanto detailed on how well Rishad has done despite the obstacles. 

"I think it is quite difficult for him. He doesn't get to play a lot of domestic matches. It is unfortunate that the teams don't use him. We don't know why that happens. He has bowled well in all of his international matches. He has done well against really good batters. He prepares himself quite well. He tries to execute the plans we give him. I am hopeful that he gets a bit more domestic cricket under his belt."

"His length has improved a lot. He can bowl more consistently now. He is working on his variation too. He can bowl better if he continues in this vein," he added.

Despite losing the first game narrowly, Bangladesh went with the same lineup in the second match and Shanto explained his reasoning behind this decision. 

"I think it is very important (not to panic). We played good cricket in the first game. We lost by three runs. We didn't lack much in that game. Everyone tried for the team, so the players and coaching staff weren't too worried. I think this really gave us the confidence in this game."

Shanto is looking forward to the third T20I, which is the series decider, at the same venue.

"We have made a comeback in the series. We have a good mindset. We have to plan better in the next game, and execute those plans," he concluded.