5 reasons Bangladesh is mighty at home

With a sensational victory in the first Test against Australia, Bangladesh has stamped their dominance in home Tests. The Asian nation has already won a Test against England and in the previous year registered ODI series wins against strong teams like India and South Africa.

The phenomenal rise of Bangladesh has stirred the cricket world. Their performance in ODI cricket has improved leaps and bounds but in Test cricket and that too especially in home Tests, they have become a formidable unit. And with their recent successes, they have proved that they can challenge any top team in their backyard.

But what has made Bangladesh a power house in home conditions? How did the team that sits at the bottom of the ICC rankings torment the top teams in world cricket? Here are the answers.

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#5. Focus on spin-friendly pitches

In the last five years, spin has become a major threat for non-Asian nations. There are hardly any world class spin bowlers in countries like South Africa, England, and Australia. The limits of Nathan Lyon and Imran Tahir for example, are well-known, and the spinners have struggled to exploit sub-continent conditions.

In the batting department too, apart from Steve Smith or Joe Root, batsmen have found it difficult to negotiate the threat of spin bowling. T20 cricket has forced batsmen to play with hard hands which is not the ideal way to deal with spin bowling and the temperament too is lacking.

Anticipating these weakness, Asian teams have now focused on making their pitches spin-friendly. India has benefited immensely from this approach and has pulverized all visiting teams with this spin friendly strategy.

Bangladesh too has joined the bandwagon and started preparing pitches that turn from day one and provide plenty of assistance for the spinners. In the Test series against England, all but one English wicket fell to spin and that reveals the trend as well as the strategy of Bangladesh.

#4. Deteriorating condition of visiting teams

The current Australian team is struggling against Bangladesh

In the last few years, Bangladesh cricket has developed immensely but they have also benefited from the fact that others teams in world cricket are going through a transitional phase.

The current Test teams of Australia and South Africa are not even a shadow of their past. The miseries of England have been exposed brutally as well. Hence, these under-confident teams have made the challenge a little easier for the Bangla Tigers.

The resolution and grit displayed by Ricky Ponting or Graeme Smith is missing while the ability to perform irrespective of the conditions has also become rare. The current teams that have toured Bangladesh consisted of players who have little knowledge of the Asian conditions. Also, these players lack the skills that are mandatory to survive against such opponents.

Thus, the drop in quality of the visiting teams has fuelled the growth of Bangladesh cricket.

#3. A balanced team

In the last couple of years, on several occasions, Bangladesh have found themselves in a corner. The Bangladesh of the past would crumble in such situations, but the current Bangladesh team has somehow managed to escape and fight back.

Every time conditions became tough, a player rose and steered the team home. This arsenal of match-winners has made the Asian nation a formidable unit in home conditions.

In the first Test against Australia, when the visitors were on the brink of chasing the target, Shakib-ul-Hassan came to the fore and tore apart Australia's batting order. In the second Test against England Mehidy Hasan pulverized the English batsman with 12 wickets in the match.

The key reason behind the rise of match-winners is the balance of the team. Due to a settled team combination, every player knows what his role in the team is and this clarity allows them to express themselves better.

Bangladesh has two quality openers in their team who are followed by solid middle order batsmen. The bowling department consists of spinners that bring variety and there are pacers who can make the new ball talk and the old ball move dangerously.

Players like Nasir Hossain and Shakib bind the team effectively with their all-round abilities and thus the Asian nation has a team that is powerful in all departments and with no obvious flaws.

#2. The 'Tamim' factor

In sub-continent Tests, the best time to score runs is when the ball is new. The old ball turns and reverse swings dangerously and is difficult to hit. Due to its hardness, the new ball comes onto the bat easily and hence is ideal for playing strokes.

Also, the pitch only gets worse with each passing day and thus the onus of scoring runs lies on the shoulders of the batsmen who bat at the top. On most occasions, runs from the openers end up setting up the game for the teams and this is exactly what Tamim Iqbal is doing for Bangladesh.

In Dhaka Test against England, Bangladesh scored 220 runs off which, 104 came from Tamim's bat alone. Also, in the first Test against Australia, the opening batsman amassed 71 and 78 runs in two innings.

Since 2014, the left-hander has scored the most runs at the opening position in Tests played in the sub-continent. With 1345 runs at an average of 46.37 he has ensured that Bangladesh got off to a flying start in every innings.

#1. World-class spinners

Shakib has done wonders with the ball'Spin to win' is the mantra for success in the sub-continent. On most occasions, the match-winners on such pitches are the spinners as they are the chief destroyers and the most potent weapons.

Fortunately for Bangladesh, there is no dearth of spinners. In fact, they have in their ranks, some of the finest spinners of the current era. Shakib's ability to turn the game on its head has been reflected on several occasions.

The left-arm spinner has impeccable accuracy, while his pace variations prove too hot to handle for batsmen. His persistence and skills add fuel to fire and make him a spin bowler of the highest quality.

The emergence of Mehidy Hasan has increased the Asian nation's might. The 19-year-old bowler with his off-breaks add variety and is capable of tying down left-handers. Taijul Islam too has proved his mettle, by registering the best bowling figures by a Bangladeshi player in Tests. His spell of 8 for 39 against Zimbabwe was simply sensational.

Courtesy these spinners, Bangladesh has tormented the visiting teams and has been successful in stamping their dominance.