Bangladesh batting coach Neil McKenzie believes his side needs to acclimatise to the pitches more than the prevailing cold in order to succeed in Ireland and England. The visitors began their campaign in Ireland on the wrong foot, losing to Ireland A by 88 runs in their only practice game ahead of the tri-series involving Ireland and West Indies, their last platform to prepare for the World Cup.
“The experienced guys know whatever it takes to play in different conditions,” McKenzie told reporters after the warm-up match. “I don’t think it’s the cold, its mainly the surfaces. Your lines change, lengths change and also your scoring opportunities change. So it’s not the weather it’s more the surface, the pitch condition and the various types of bowlers you will be facing.”
That said, Bangladesh do have some cold weather to contend with. While they practiced in the hot and humid conditions in Dhaka, they were surprised by the chilling weather in Ireland that goes to down to two degrees at night while remaining in the bracket of 10 to 11 degrees during the day time.
Whether due to weather or not, Bangladesh bowlers lacked clarity of line and length in the warm-up game. They leaked 307 runs in the 50-over affair, only for their batsmen to disappoint too. Most of them got a start but no one was able to play a match-defining innings.
