The wait for Bangladesh cricket fans to see their team play in the Asia Cup 2022 will finally be over on Tuesday. The Bangladesh national men’s T20 cricket team will take on Afghanistan in their opening fixture on August 30 at the Sharjah Cricket Ground. The match will start at 8 p.m. (Bangladesh Standard Time).

The Bangladesh team needs a suitable strategy which could help them dominate Afghanistan during the contest. Power hitting is one of the areas where the Tigers need to give special attention. India’s Hardik Pandya impressed everyone with his match-winning, aggressive knock against Pakistan. He was also lauded for staying calm at the crease while chasing the target. Someone from the Bangladesh squad will have to do a similar kind of role like Pandya does for India. Let’s take a look at which Bangladeshi players have power-hitting potential in the death overs.

What is Hardik Pandya’s role in India’s Twenty20 team?

The 28-year-old Indian all-rounder, Hardik Pandya, made his international debut in the Twenty20 format against Australia in 2016. Hardik was initially considered the next Kapil Dev of Indian cricket because of his ability both with the bat and ball. Over the years, he has made a name for himself by delivering match-winning performances for team India. Pandya is now one of the valuable members of India’s limited-overs side.

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Hardik Pandya is a medium pacer and a hard-hitting batter. He has 133 wickets and 2,785 runs in 145 matches for the Indian national team. Pandya is used as a fourth or fifth bowler and his batting position is usually either no. 6 or no. 7.

Hardik always tries to provide important breakthroughs and is economical with the ball. In batting, his current role is to finish the game while chasing and accelerate the run rate in the death overs if he bats first. The right-hander has become one of the most trusted cricketers when it comes to power hitting in the final few overs of an innings.

Pandya’s recent T20I stats speak for themselves. He has featured in 25 Twenty20 International matches since January 2021 and helped India win 17 of them. In winning matches, Pandya’s combined strike rate was more than 150, which indicates how effective a batter he has become for India. Besides, he has been the most successful middle-order batter for team India since 2021.

Read Asia Cup 2022: 8 milestones within sight of Bangladesh players

Since January 1, 2021, the top three most successful middle-order batters for India in the T20 format

   Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/

Bangladeshi players who have potentials to bat like Hardik Pandya

Bangladesh cricketers’ records haven’t been that impressive in comparison to the players of big cricketing nations. However, they have very good T20 records at domestic level. The players need to focus more and improve their technical ability in order to improve their performance on the international stage for the Bangladesh national side.

Read Asia Cup 2022: How Bangladesh can defeat a confident Afghanistan team

The Bangladesh players who bat between five and eight positions will have to play a similar kind of role to India’s Hardik Pandya. The players who can bat in the middle order are: Mushfiqur Rahim, Afif Hossain, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mosaddek Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Mahedi Hasan, and Mohammad Saifuddin. Except for Sabbir Rahman, the rest of the four players have regularly played for the Tigers national Twenty20 side in recent series. Sabbir was called back after a three-year absence. Let’s see their performances in T20I cricket. 

Mohammad Saifuddin

Saifuddin has a similar kind of cricketing profile to Hardik Pandya. If the left-hander gets a chance in the playing XI, he will bat at no.8. However, Saifuddin is yet to reach the level of Pandya in batting.

Mushfiqur Rahim

The veteran batter, Mushfiqur is expected to bat at No.4. According to reports, he may even open the innings for Bangladesh. Mushfiqur’s role will be to strengthen the middle-order, not to play a specific hard-hitting role.

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Mahmudullah Riyad

Mahmudullah Riyad is the most experienced cricketer among them. But Riyad’s recent international performances haven’t been up to the mark. His overall strike rate has dropped since last year.

Mahedi Hasan

Another potential player could be Mahedi Hasan. The right-handed, aggressive-minded batter has found a place in the Bangladesh T20 squad by showing impressive performances in the BPL tournaments. However, Mahedi is yet to fulfill his true potential for the national side.

Sabbir Rahman

Sabbir has a decent T20I record and could be an ideal candidate for the power-hitting duties. He has a better average and strike rate than the other two. Sabbir has also hit more T20I sixes than Afif and Mosaddek. One major worry regarding Sabbir could be his absence from international cricket for three long years. Making a comeback and immediately starting to perform is quite difficult. If Sabbir gets a chance to play at his full potential, he could be a real trump card for Bangladesh.

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Afif Hossain

Afif gets the vice-captaincy role for the Bangladesh T20I side, which indicates how highly the BCB has valued his potential. The left-handed batter has shown that he is very much capable of accelerating the run rate. With time, he could get even better. The possibility of promoting Afif in the batting order is unlikely in this tournament. Therefore, he may be seen to play at either the no.5 or no.6 position.

Mosaddek Hossain

Mosaddek is very much capable of smashing the ball out of the ground. Surprisingly, he has only seven sixes in 19 T20I innings. However, the right-handed batter has the potential to become successful in the power-hitting role if he plays with the proper mindset and feels confident in his ability.

Since January 1, 2021, the top three most successful middle-order batters for Bangladesh in the T20 format

   Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/

Read Asia Cup Cricket: A look back at Bangladesh’s 5 memorable victories

Bottom Line

India’s Hardik Pandya is arguably the best power hitter in the lower middle order from Asia. He has the ability to win a match on his own through his swashbuckling batting effort in the death overs. The Bangladesh Twenty20 cricket team has very limited options to do a job like Pandya in the ongoing Asia Cup 2022. Sabbir Rahman, Afif Hossain and Mosaddek Hossain are probably the three Bangladesh players who have the potential to bat like Hardik Pandya.

Will they, or anyone from the middle-order, be able to fulfill the expectation of power-hitting in this tournament? The Bangladesh campaign is hoping that someone will carry the responsibility and will make an invaluable impact on the team.