Our cricket performance in Karachi
Nazmul Karim, Dhaka
Before our cricket team started for Pakistan, our captain, in an interview, said that his ultimate object was to play for five days in the test. First of all, test cricket is itself a five-day game and how can our scheme be otherwise unless of course we can win the game in three or four days? In the Karachi test, suppose, the Pakistan team batted first and continued to bat for all five days. Would that fulfil the captain's desire because we fielded and played for five days? According to the coach, the purpose is to improve 'individual performance'. I do not know what is an 'individual performance' when 11 players make a team and together play the game. Our purpose should have been to win and not to play for five days or to show individual performance. How does it matter if we play for five days or what an individual performance has to do when as a team we have lost the game? I wonder what our journalists in the print and electronic media and the critics are trying to express. In Karachi test we have lost by 7 wickets but surprisingly everyone seems happy and excited because we have 'improved'. In test cricket there can be three results -- won, lost or drawn. There is no outcome called 'improved'. It is not a humiliation because we have lost but it is a disgrace that we never wanted to win. We need to practice more in our home fields -- play more local matches to improve our standard as a national team as well as individual performance. But when we will be playing a test match against another country, we must not play with an intention to 'improve' our standard or to show individual performance. Our only focus must be to win. If we don't, there is no disgrace. We must realise that it was not only a 'game' the Royal Bengal Tigers went to play with Pakistan. It was much more serious a matter.
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