Mominul Haque: Bangladesh prepared to face challenges posed by South Africa

Mominul Haque, Bangladesh’s captain, believes his squad is adequately prepared for the first Test against South Africa, which begins on Thursday at Kingsmead.

Mominul stated at a press conference before the game: “South Africa are playing at home and that is always an advantage. However, we have been here for nearly three weeks and the boys have adjusted to conditions.”

While the one-day side was pulling off a historic series triumph against South Africa, Mominul and the other Test specialists were practising at former South African player and coach Gary Kirsten’s academy in Cape Town.

Bangladesh has lost all six Tests on three previous journeys to South Africa, and Kingsmead is a new factor for the current team, as they have only played there once, in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, when they lost to Canada.

Mominul expressed his uncertainty over the pitch’s outcome.

“There’s not too much point in thinking too much about the wicket. It could aid the pacers but still be good for batting. Spinners may come into play as the match progresses.”

In contrast to past tours, Bangladesh will aim to match South Africa’s fast bowlers.

When they won a Test in New Zealand in January, Ebadot Hossain was named man of the match, and Taskin Ahmed was named player of the ODI series against South Africa.

“The pace bowlers have been doing very well in recent times,” said Mominul. “They have a lot of confidence coming into this Test series and the whole team has confidence in them.”

Keshav Maharaj, a South African left-arm spinner who plays domestic cricket for Kingsmead, remarked earlier that he wasn’t sure how the pitch would play because there was more grass on the surface than usual.

“I haven’t seen Kingsmead with the colour of the grass like this,” he said. “It’s a relaid surface.” But he said he expected it to be a “traditional” first-class pitch.

Maharaj is by far the most experienced Test bowler in the group, with most of South Africa’s first-choice fast bowlers playing in the Indian Premier League.

However, he expressed confidence in the replacement fast bowlers’ ability to pose a threat to Bangladesh’s batsmen.

For the latest Sports News Follow BOL News on Google News. Read more on Latest Sports News on oldsite.bolnews.com