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Muminul Haque still could not. Bangladesh Test captain returned with zero runs in the second innings of Mirpur Test. Mount Manganui scored six in an innings in that historic Test against New Zealand last January. Muminul has not run at bat since then. Not literally.
Mominul failed to reach double figures in seven innings after scoring 36 runs in Christchurch's next Test against New Zealand in January. 0, 2, 6, 5, 2, 9, 0 — If you put the scores of his last 8 innings side by side, it looks like a phone number. Whoever has scored the most centuries (11) in Tests for Bangladesh, this state of his batting form will give rise to anxiety for anyone. The question is whether it is time to exclude Muminul from the Tests.
The question was also asked at the press conference of Shakib Al Hasan at the end of the fourth day of Mirpur Test today. However, Shakib's answer, Muminul has no alternative at the moment. Instead, everyone needs to support him now.
In the state of our Test cricket, we have no better option than Mominul.
Shakib Al Hasan on the question of Muminul taking a break
Muminul himself made a kind of dispassionate remark about his poor form at the press conference on the last day of the Chittagong Test against Sri Lanka. He said he was not worried about his batting at all. But his failure in the two innings of the Mirpur Test has again raised questions.
When will Muminul return to form, how will he return? This discussion was also held in the fourth day press conference today. Shakib Al Hasan has to answer the question raised about his captain.
Shakib naturally stood by Muminul's side. "It is the duty of everyone on the team to stand by the captain at this bad time," he said. The most important thing at this time is how we support him. "
The question is to remove Muminul from the party, in that case, who is his alternative? Shakib has highlighted this fact in his own words, "In the current state of our Test cricket, we have no better option than Mominul. I think it's just a matter of an innings. He can change everything if he plays a good innings. '
Before the tour of India at the end of 2019, Mominul was given the responsibility of Test captaincy. He got that too because of Shakib's ban.
In the last three years, there have been successes as well as failures under Muminul. Under his captaincy, Bangladesh won the Mount Manganui Test on New Zealand soil. But since then, his successive failures at bat have overshadowed the success and failure of the team and raised questions about Muminul's place in the team.