‘Can bounce back from here’

It is said that in cricket it takes considerable time to improve the overall skills of a player in bowling and batting, however, fielding is one of those aspects which can be improved upon in a short time through hard work.

Apart from the poor batting and bowling, the Tigers' fielding was far below par during their 91-run defeat in the first of a three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka on Friday.

The fielders had leaked at least 10 to 15 runs while the experienced Mahmudullah Riyad dropped a rather simple catch of Kusal Mendis at long on, despite having covered quite some ground to reach the ball which inexplicably popped out of his hands.

"Fielding is not something you go for technique. You can't change the techniques while fielding. You have to see their attitude in the ground and involvement. If they can relate more, that would be better. Sometimes we become shattered when opponents dominate. We have to come out of that situation and play better," Bangladesh interim coach Khaled Mahmud told reporters in Colombo yesterday.

"We had a lot of missed fielding yesterday. I believe, the way they fielded, we are definitely a better fielding side. Our back against the wall but I believe we can come back from here.''

Interestingly, those who were rated as the best fielders on the Bangladesh team, such as Sabbir Rahman, Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Mosaddek Hossain, were all culprits of not being able to live up to their own standards in the first one-dayer.

A dropped catch can often serve a double blow as it demoralises the bowlers while if the reprieved batsman goes on to play a big knock, it puts a lot of mental pressure on the team. Fielding is an especially important chink to iron out for teams like Bangladesh, who are often unable to score or chase above 300 runs.

It will be vital for the team management, along with fielding coach Ryan Cook, to work on this aspect if they are to stay alive in the series.