India vs Bangladesh: Restricting Kohli is key but can't write off others either, says Shakib

Bengaluru: Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan said on Tuesday Virat Kohli is the key player for India, but his team cannot take other batsmen lightly either as they are all match-winners. Even though the likes of Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Suresh Raina have not been among runs, Shakib said his team will not take any of the Indian batsman lightly. “Obviously he (Kohli) is key player for India. They (Rohit, Dhawan, Raina) are all match-winners and yes, they have not been among runs, but we have to be on the watchout because India has the world’s best batting lineup. So, we need to be careful and we need to be very disciplined with our bowling and fielding to restrict them,” Shakib told reporters on the eve of Bangladesh-India encounter here. [caption id=“attachment_2691170” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Bangladesh player Shakib Al Hasan speaks during the press conference at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Solaris[/caption] Shakib said toss might play a crucial role tomorrow but his team has to play good cricket against India. “It is important for both the team. Toss might play a crucial part, but it is more important how we play in the middle. We have to be careful because India is playing for the trophy. We need to be very disciplined in batting and bowling. We need to play our best tomorrow,” he said. Asked how the team has responded to Arafat Sunny and Taskin Ahmed’s suspension, Shakib said, “Obviously it is disappointing to lose two crucial players at crucial situation, but we cannot help because there is nothing in our hands. We have to move forward and need to focus on Wednesday’s game. That’s all.” “Obviously (it has affected us) as he was bowling well for us for the last six months. Yes, he was important part of the team, but it is not that everything is over for him.” Shakib said it is up to captain and coach to send Mahmudullah up the order but it all depends on match situation. “It is totally up to captain and coach. He batted No. 5 for some time. It all depends on situation and match condition,” he said. Asked about the condition of Tamim Iqbal, Shakib said, “I am not sure whether he will be fit for tomorrow or not. I haven’t met him. So, I don’t know about it.” Shakib said it was disappointing to drop some crucial catches against Australia last night. “Obviously fielding is the crucial part of the game and we would love to take all the catches to save runs, and we couldn’t do it yesterday. It is was disappointing because we have young and outstanding fielders. Hopefully, we will not make same mistakes, which we made yesterday because we have been doing really well in terms of fielding,” he said. Talking about the wicket, Shakib said, “It is a very good wicket, but for the last two games, the ball is gripping. Normally doesn’t happen that way. It is a high scoring game and ground that most like to chase.” PTI